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

1457 ET - Analysts surveyed by Dow Jones are forecasting inventories and average daily production of ethanol to fall back from the prior week. Analysts forecast that stocks could land anywhere from 24 million barrels to 25.24 million barrels, versus 25.04 million barrels reported by the EIA last week. Average daily production is anticipated to land anywhere between 1.085 million barrels and 1.110 million barrels a day, versus 1.110 million barrels a day reported last week. CBOT corn futures closed trading for the day down 1%. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com)

1444 ET - Gold futures make small gains despite a rise in Treasury yields after the Treasury Department said it would buy back $6 billion in bonds this week, less than some in the market expected. The dollar weakened, however, which tends to support gold. An easing in Japanese yields and continued central bank buying--with China's central bank adding 20 tons in August--also helped support prices, while the market remains focused on U.S. inflation data later this week, Konstantinos Chrysikos of Kudo.com says in a note. Front month gold settles up 0.5% in New York at $4,416 a troy ounce. Silver gains 2.5% to $67.942 a troy ounce. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)

1233 ET - Renewed fighting between the U.S. and Iran is dimming prospects for an agreement to settle the conflict, creating scope for sustained upside in crude, says Nikos Tzabouras of Tradu. But crude oil continues to find a way out of the Persian Gulf and the U.S. still prefers to pressure Tehran and its enablers through economic measures, he adds. "President Trump may also be incentivized to seek an off-ramp as the conflict increasingly clashes with his domestic agenda, with the midterms getting closer." WTI is up 3.5% at $96.25 a barrel and Brent gains 3.2% to $101.08.(anthony.harrup@wsj.com)

1156 ET - Casey's General Stores is navigating a choppy fuel environment as rising oil costs weigh on its profitability. "Volatile is the word I would describe the fuel margins," Chief Financial Officer Steve Bramlage says on a call with analysts. "Depending on the headlines that you read about in the paper and social media, there would be a corresponding move in fuel margin over the next day or two." Margins swung from the 30% range to the 60% range during the latest quarter, Bramlage says. Because of the external factors, it has been impossible to solve the problem over the course of a quarter, he says. Casey's shares slide 15%. (katherine.hamilton@wsj.com)

1150 ET - Gold futures are steady as bond yields rise after the Treasury says it will buy up to $6 billion of longer-term debt at its Thursday buyback operation. The precious metals market is also focusing on this week's inflation data--producer prices due Thursday and consumer prices on Friday. Gold's recent slippage came as high Treasury yields, firmer Fed rate-hike expectations and rising oil prices "collectively outweighed dollar softness," Kaynat Chainwala of Kotak Neo says in a note. Softer inflation readings would reduce the probability of a rate increase "and open the path toward the $4,500 resistance zone," while an above-estimate result along with high energy prices "would likely reinstate selling pressure and bring the $4,300 support zone into focus." Front month gold is up 0.2% at $4,401.20 a troy ounce. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)

1136 ET - Second-round effects from high energy prices in the U.K. are unlikely to emerge, largely because labor-market conditions are much looser than they were in 2022's inflationary episode, Oxford Economics' Andrew Goodwin says in a note. The Bank of England will therefore hold its key interest rate at 3.75% until well into next year, he says. Then, once policymakers are content that the inflation shock has proven transitory, it should cut rates again, according to Goodwin. A majority of rate setters feel that cooling domestic inflationary pressures before the Iran war, the fact that the policy rate is already restrictive, and the tightening in financial conditions that's already occurred, give them breathing space to sit back and see how things play out, he says. (edward.frankl@wsj.com)

0943 ET - U.S. natural gas futures move lower in early trading as the summer season approaches an end. "A cooler forecast with plenty of supply is keeping the 'sell the rallies' theme in place," Dennis Kissler of BOK Financial says in a note. Even with U.S. LNG demand at its highest since April, heavy U.S. storage and coming mild fall temperatures mean ample supplies are available, he says. A near-term positive is that this week's storage report is expected to show a smaller-than-average inventory build. Nymex natural gas is down 2% at $2.857/mmBtu. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)

0921 ET - Oil futures extend their rally with Brent at $100 a barrel as the escalating conflict in the Persian Gulf feeds concerns about supply out of the Middle East. Increasing strikes by both the U.S. and Iran are raising the war premium and the inflation fear factor, Peter Cardillo of Spartan Capital says in a note. "At the same time, a pickup in Chinese demand is strengthening the fundamental outlook for oil, even as overall supply and demand remain relatively balanced." WTI is up 2.8% at $95.66 a barrel and Brent is 2.7% higher at $100.58 a barrel. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)

0848 ET - Energean delivered a strong operational recovery in Israel and is advancing the offshore Katlan field, Peel Hunt analysts write. Resilient cash generation and Katlan will help the London-listed energy company deliver its 2026 targets and set it up for future growth, the analysts write. Shares rise 8.3% to 857 pence. (adam.whittaker@wsj.com)

0847 ET - Fortum's nuclear power deal with Google could have favorable implications not only for the Nordic energy company's valuation, but also the European data-center buildout story, Citi analyst Piotr Dzieciolowski writes. The deal has a long duration, is material in size, and looks to be priced at a substantial premium to current expected future wholesale prices, he says. Fortum and Google signed a 22-year power purchase agreement for 50% of the Loviisa nuclear power plant's capacity. The agreement will start in 2028 and will reach 50% of the Loviisa power plant's capacity in 2030-49. The volume linked to the deal is above 4 terawatt hours, which is about 9% of Fortum's current portfolio and 5% of Finnish demand, Citi adds. Shares rise 14%. (dominic.chopping@wsj.com)

0845 ET - The 2-year yield is rising as Brent crude crosses the $100-a-barrel threshold amid the escalating conflict in the Middle East. The U.S. military destroyed five Iranian oil tankers Tuesday, and Iran retaliated overnight with a ballistic-missile attack from Iranian territory into Jordan, with no casualties reported. The 2-year yield is at 4.43%, up from Tuesday's level of 4.40%. The 10-year yield is trading roughly at Tuesday's level of 4.81%. It's a light day for any major U.S. economic releases, and investors will be eyeing buyback details from the U.S. Treasury. (jessica.coacci@wsj.com)

0727 ET - U.A.E. banks continue to lead lending growth in the Gulf despite regional geopolitical disruption, Kamco Invest says. Gross loans at U.A.E.-listed banks rise 4.5% from the previous quarter in the second quarter, the strongest increase among GCC markets, while central-bank data show systemwide credit growth of 18.1% on year. The lending outlook also remains firm, with First Abu Dhabi Bank raising its full-year loan-growth guidance to the upper end of its low-to-mid-teens range, Kamco says.