The latest Market Talks covering Energy markets. Published exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires throughout the day.

1100 ET - Athabasca Oil's shares have enjoyed a strong run up this year, but BMO's Tariq Saad says that its premium valuation could limit the shares, downgrading the stock rating to market perform from market outperform. The analyst downgradedshares, saying they are "now within the 10% threshold of our target price." Shares fall 4.5% to C$10.94, which is 56% higher year-to-date. Still, Saad says that Athabasca has one of the strongest growth trajectories among its peer group. In the near-term, he thinks "ATH's premium valuation could limit further share price outperformance." (adriano.marchese@wsj.com)

0940 ET - Canada PM Mark Carney is fighting back against hefty US tariffs with a notable tax cut that could improve profitability for Canadian transportation, energy, mining and construction companies, says Rosenberg Research economist Robert Embree. The cut applies to Canada's marginal-effective tax rate, which is the levy companies pay on each additional dollar of business investment. Embree says Canada's marginal-effective tax rate is now reduced to 6.4%, or a faction of the US rate. He says the near-term growth implications are positive but modest, noting gains will be offset by the negative drag from US tariffs. Embree adds this move will be "modestly positive" for Canada stock indexes, with stronger earnings in the offing for industrials, materials and energy. (Paul.Vieira@wsj.com; @paulvieira)

0935 ET - U.S. natural gas futures are higher for a third session with warmer-for-longer weather keeping up power-sector demand. September is poised for record heat, although "seasonality will remain a dominant force over the next three weeks" and power-sector consumption could fall by 6.1 Bcf/d between now and the end of the month, Eli Rubin of EBW Analytics says in a report. "A scorching mid-September may enhance the seasonal cliff in power sector gas burns ahead." Nymex natural gas is up 1.2% at $2.954/mmBtu.(anthony.harrup@wsj.com)

0921 ET - The dollar could gain if elevated energy prices support expectations for interest-rate rises across the G-10, HSBC strategist Daragh Maher says in a note. In this scenario, currencies should respond more to their exposure to the energy price shock rather than rate expectations, he says. "On that basis, the dollar could benefit from the U.S. economy's greater energy self-sufficiency and resilience relative to more import-dependent economies, particularly the eurozone and the U.K." (renae.dyer@wsj.com)

0919 ET - Oil futures give back some ground after rising to their highest level since May on wider threats to shipping and energy facilities in the Middle East. "With both shipping routes and export infrastructure increasingly exposed to the broader regional conflict, even temporary disruptions can sustain a meaningful geopolitical premium in crude prices," Francesco Martoccia of Citi Research says in a note. Citi expects the escalation to be bullish for oil and products before an eventual Strait of Hormuz reopening in 4Q supported by regional diplomacy, he says. "Yet, recent developments highlight that the path toward de-escalation is unlikely to be linear." WTI is off 1.9% at $103.84 a barrel and Brent is down 1.1% at $107.51. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)

0918 ET - Oil above $100 a barrel and restricted physical supplies are beginning to curb Asian consumption, though the pullback is better viewed as demand curtailment rather than permanent demand destruction, S&P Global Energy says. Middle Eastern crude production has fallen to around 18.2 million barrels a day in the third quarter from 24.8 million in the fourth quarter of 2025. Consumers are driving less, industries are reducing operating rates and refiners are cutting throughput as fuel and feedstocks become more expensive and scarce, but some of that demand could return if supplies normalize and prices ease, S&P says. (farhan.rafid@wsj.com)

0711 ET - A more risk-averse market has lifted the dollar only modestly as a safe-haven asset, Societe Generale's Kit Juckes says in a note. The realization that the Middle conflict is likely to drag on, together with higher energy costs, hasn't managed to lift the DXY dollar index back above 100 after its decline to 98 over the summer, he says. "This is partly due to increased optimism about the growth outlook elsewhere, relative to the concerns that prevailed at the start of the conflict," Juckes says. The DXY last trades up 0.1% at 99.671. (renae.dyer@wsj.com)

0656 ET - Electronics manufacturing services provider Celestica has a long runway of demand to tap into, as AI hardware improves and requires updates. TD Cowen's John Shao says that AI networking infrastructure will evolve into a "recurring hardware refresh cycle rather than a one-time spending event" as aging 400G and 800G Ethernet switches deployed through 2029 are upgraded to higher-bandwidth architectures. Backed by big AI names like OpenAI and AMD, Shao says that Celestica can sustain around $20 billion in annual revenue beyond 2030 from switch replacements alone. "This creates a multi-stage refresh cycle that extends the AI networking opportunity well into the next decade and increases confidence in the durability of CLS's growth profile." (adriano.marchese@wsj.com)

0433 ET - Brent crude oil's rise above $100 a barrel seems to reflect pricing in of severe risk scenario, rather than a confirmed, lasting loss of oil supply, says BNY Investments' Aninda Mitra in a note. Traders appear to be placing a premium on immediate oil supply security, which reflects the risk of a large and prolonged disruption that hasn't clearly materialized yet, he says. While Iranian exports appear to have come under pressure in recent weeks, this hasn't yet translated into a broader collapse in supply flowing through the Strait of Hormuz, he says. However, he notes that the situation around Bab al-Mandeb Strait deserves close attention as it could affect a critical shipping lane. Front-month Brent crude oil futures decline 0.9% to $107.79 a barrel; WTI drops 1.5% to $104.25 a barrel. (megan.cheah@wsj.com)

0336 ET - London's miners rise in opening trade Wednesday as oil prices fall and commodities gain. Oil prices slip as immediate supply concerns are eased by an unexpected jump in U.S. inventories. Miners are some of the world's largest consumers of diesel. Gold prices also rebound 1% on easing oil prices and a fall in Treasury yields. Silver is up 2.3% while three-month LME copper futures are 0.8% higher. Anglo American gains 1.8% while BHP's London shares rise 1.4%. Copper miner Antofagasta is nearly 3% higher while silver and gold miner Fresnillo trades up 3.1%, and peer Endeavour Mining moves 2.6% higher. (adam.whittaker@wsj.com)

0324 ET - European stock indexes are in green across the board, as banks and AI-linked stocks recoup some of the week's losses. The Europe-wide Stoxx 600 is 0.4% higher. London's FTSE 100 adds 0.35%, led by housebuilder Barratt Redrow--up 6.15% after earnings. Miners also gain as metals prices increase. In Paris, the French CAC 40 nudges up 0.2%. Chip maker STMicroelectronics leads the index, gaining 1.75%, though software group Capgemini falls back 1.5%. Luxuries also falter--Hermes loses 0.85%. The German DAX adds 0.35%, led by AI-linked industrials group Hochtief--up 3.5%. Italy's FTSE MIB and Spain's IBEX 35 both rise by around 0.5%. The Dutch AEX rises 0.3% as ASML jumps 2.25%.(josephmichael.stonor@wsj.com)

0324 ET - Gold rises as oil prices and Treasury yields ease ahead of the Federal Reserve's interest-rate announcement due later Wednesday. The slight fall in oil prices has helped allay some energy-driven inflation concerns but not enough to quell expectations the Fed will hike rates. Noninterest-yielding gold also got a boost as 10-year and two-year Treasury yields edged lower. "The Fed's guidance will be critical for gold, with a more hawkish signal likely to sustain pressure through higher yields, while a less aggressive tightening path could allow gold to regain support from geopolitical uncertainty and portfolio-hedging demand," MUFG's Soojin Kim writes. New York gold futures rise 0.8% to $4,366.40 a troy ounce.