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

0207 GMT - Malaysia's technology sector's bullish momentum could sustain into 2H, supported by improving earnings, positive management guidance and robust order books amid the semiconductor upcycle, RHB IB analyst Lee Meng Horng says in a note. AI-led demand remains a key growth catalyst, with strong wafer fabrication equipment and automated test equipment demand benefiting equipment and engineering services players, he says. Lee expects to see greater upside among laggards and second-tier names where earnings recovery and operational improvements are not fully reflected in valuations. RHB maintains an overweight rating on Malaysian tech sector, pegging Malaysian Pacific Industries, Pentamaster, CTOS Digital, Coraza Integrated Technology and JHM Consolidation as top picks. (yingxian.wong@wsj.com)

0138 GMT - Idemitsu Kosan's earnings are likely to be supported by wider margins of export products, Jefferies analysts say in a report. Earlier this year, the Iran-related crude supply shock forced Japanese refiners like Idemitsu to slow operations and prioritize domestic supply. This headwind is now reversing as alternative crude procurement has restored utilization, the U.S. bank says. Idemitsu is likely to benefit from strong crude procurement and surplus export capacity, Jefferies says. A recovery in the Vietnam joint venture Nghi Son Refinery and Petrochemical is also a positive catalyst, the bank says. Jefferies raises its rating on Idemitsu to buy from hold and its target price to 2,200 yen from Y1,400. Shares are up 5.4% at Y1,626.5. (kosaku.narioka@wsj.com; @kosakunarioka)

0024 GMT - Amplitude Energy's intersection of natural gas with its Juliet-1 exploration well should spark relief among investors given two earlier setbacks in its drilling campaign, says Jarden. Its target price rises by 9.7% to 2.03 Australian dollars a share to capture 50% of its unrisked valuation for Juliet of A$0.36/share. Previously, Jarden had a zero risk weighting given negative results from the earlier Elanora and Isabella prospects. "While some boxes remain to be ticked before we can call Juliet a gas discovery, all data released to date points to a positive outcome," analyst Nik Burns says. Amplitude's drilling campaign aims to find natural gas to support its East Coast Supply Project in southeastern Australia. Jarden rates the stock at overweight; the stock is up 1.1% at A$1.89 Wednesday, and up some 14% so far this week. (david.winning@wsj.com; @dwinningWSJ)

2334 GMT - Oil rises in early Asian trade as Houthi militants' attack on Saudi Arabia's energy infrastructure amplifies fears over supply disruptions in the Middle East. Iran-backed Houthi militants in Yemen fired drones and missiles at a number of Saudi Arabia's southern energy facilities. Saudi Arabia confirmed the attacks, which the Houthis said targeted facilities in Abha, Najran and Jazan. "The recent escalation in attacks has weighed on oil flows from the Persian Gulf," ANZ Research analysts say in a research report. Front-month WTI crude oil futures are 1.4% higher at $94.35 per barrel. (ronnie.harui@wsj.com)

2331 GMT - Australian stocks are set to open higher, with ASX futures up by 0.2% ahead of Wednesday's session. That follows a weak session on Wall Street where the DJIA fell by 1.2% as investors returned from the Labor Day break. Australia's benchmark S&P/ASX 200 already shed 1.0% Tuesday and will be balancing soft U.S. cues with gains in commodity prices. Oil futures rose by 1.7%, while copper hit new record highs and iron ore also climbed. Ahead of the open, Westgold Resources said it aims to raise annual gold output to roughly 500,000 oz before the end of this decade, while coal miner Coronado Global Resources revised its leadership structure to support its turnaround plans. (rhiannon.hoyle@wsj.com; @RhiannonHoyle)

2213 GMT - The daily volume of crude that Asian refineries are expected to process during this year's last quarter could be reduced by 1.4 million barrels if the Middle East conflict lasts until year end, creating profit opportunities for those businesses, according to Wood Mackenzie. Ukraine's frequent drone attacks on Russian refineries, which trimmed 3.5 million barrels of their daily crude intake last month alone, is further limiting supply of petroleum fuels, the energy-focused consulting firm says. "The scale of disruption to global crude [refining] is without modern precedent," says Alan Gelder, a Wood Mackenzie's senior vice president. He adds, however, that refiners should seize the temporary opportunity to prepare for the future. "A lower oil price environment combined with approaching peak oil demand will quickly expose the gap between competitive and uncompetitive assets." (luis.garcia@wsj.com; @lhvgarcia)

1918 GMT - U.S. natural gas futures start the week lower with the market bracing for cooler late-September weather that will reduce power-sector demand. "Cooling demand is expected to step down steadily through the second half of September, making today's decline look more like a repricing of near-term weather exposure than a sharp deterioration in fundamentals," Gelber & Associates says in a note. Strong LNG demand remains the strongest counterweight to bearish weather, the firm adds. Nymex natural gas settles down 2% at $2.916/mmBtu. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)

1912 GMT - Oil futures extend their gains as the Middle East conflict escalates with Houthi attacks on Saudi infrastructure and continuing strikes in the Strait of Hormuz. "It doesn't seem like President Trump has any kind of good off-ramp here. And it feels like the Iranians despite the blockade feel they're in a good negotiating position, and so it's hard to see things getting resolved quickly," says David Grumhaus, chief investment officer at Duff & Phelps Investment Management. Also, with U.S. strategic oil reserves drawn down to low levels, those releases will have to be reduced, he adds. "I think oil is likely to remain elevated." WTI settles up 1.9% at $93.03 a barrel, a three-month high. Brent rises 0.9% to $97.92, its highest settlement since July 23. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)

1826 GMT - Gold futures settle lower as the market watches an escalation in the Middle East conflict while looking to this week's U.S. inflation data for clues on the Fed's possible interest-rate moves. "The Fed is going to matter, but we saw a pretty good dollar rally from the middle of May to late June, and we've seen the dollar come off a fair amount since then," says David Grumhaus, chief investment officer at Duff & Phelps Investment Management. "That has helped with gold this time around." An uptick in ETF flows into gold has also supported the metal, he adds. Front-month gold settles down 0.8% in New York at $4,393.90 a troy ounce. Silver rises 0.4% to $66.297 a troy ounce. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)

1641 GMT -- Qatar leads major Gulf stocks higher, with the QE Index rising 0.7%. Abu Dhabi's benchmark index advances 0.5%, the Dubai Financial Market General Index gains 0.3% and Saudi Arabia's Tadawul All Share Index edges up 0.1%. Kuwait Financial Centre Markaz says GCC equities are expected to remain driven by oil prices and regional geopolitical developments, while resilient non-oil activity and strong fiscal positions continue to support regional economies. Oil prices remain elevated after fresh attacks on Saudi energy infrastructure, with Brent nearing $100 a barrel in early European trading before retreating to around $97.80, while WTI futures also rise to about $93.76 a barrel. (farhan.rafid@wsj.com)

1438 GMT - Gold futures are lower with the market watching a rise in oil prices and for U.S. inflation data later this week. "The main challenge facing gold at present is the interaction between two opposing forces," Rania Gule of XS.com says in a note. "The first is geopolitical risk, which supports demand for gold as one of the world's most important safe-haven assets. The second is the growing possibility that U.S. monetary policy will remain restrictive, increasing the opportunity cost of holding a non-yielding asset such as gold." Gold for December delivery is off 0.8% in New York at $4,440.60 a troy ounce. Silver is down 0.2% at $66.59 a troy ounce. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)

1411 GMT - Bank of America lifts its oil price estimates as strikes resume in the Persian Gulf, threatening further supply disruptions. "Renewed military tensions between the U.S. and Iran, including attacks on oil tankers, have kept uncertainty and volatility elevated," analysts at BofA Global Research say in a note. They see Brent crude averaging $83 a barrel in the second half of this year and $75 a barrel in 2027. Previously they expected Brent in a $70-$80 range in 2H26 and to average $70 in 2027.They still expect a gradual normalization of Strait of Hormuz flows, but "if skirmishes curbing oil flows continue into year-end, Brent could trade in a $95-$120/barrel range."