Iron Ore Rises on Positive Sentiment — Market Talk

Palm oil prices are lower in Asian trading, weighed by softer overnight soybean oil prices on the Chicago Board of Trade. However, a seasonal dip in production, as oil palm trees enter their rest phase, is expected to provide short-term support before output picks up in 3Q, AmInvestment Bank says in a note. Strong demand from India amid competitive prices and steady consumption is also a key factor in sustaining CPO market strength, it adds. AmInvestment Bank sees support at 4,063 ringgit a ton and resistance at 4,115 ringgit a ton. The Bursa Malaysia Derivatives September contract falls 27 ringgit to 4,064 ringgit a ton. (yingxian.wong@wsj.com)

Gold edged up to around $3,330 per ounce on Friday, heading for a weekly advance as concerns over the US fiscal deficit and lingering tariff uncertainty boosted the metal’s safe-haven appeal.

On Thursday, the House approved President Donald Trump’s massive package of tax and spending cuts, which is expected to add more than $3 trillion to the country’s deficit over the next decade.

Meanwhile, Trump said he would begin sending letters to countries on Friday specifying what tariff rates they will face on imports to the US—a clear shift from earlier pledges to negotiate individual deals.

However, gold's upside was capped by strong US labor market data, which showed that firms added a more-than-expected 147,000 jobs in June and the jobless rate unexpectedly dropped to 4.1%, strengthening the case for the Federal Reserve to hold interest rates steady.

For the week, the precious metal is on track to post a gain of over 1%, ending two consecutive weeks of losses.

Copper is flat in early Asian trade amid concerns over weakening demand. Copper prices have gained more than 16% to breach USD10,000 a ton since the U.S. announced its reciprocal tariffs on trading partners, ANZ research analysts say. However, interest from Chinese fabricators appears to be waning due to the elevated prices, they say in a commentary. The three-month LME copper contract is flat at $9,959.00 a ton. (tracy.qu@wsj.com)

Brent crude oil futures edged up to $68.7 per barrel on Friday after the US took fresh steps to restrict the trade of Iranian oil, ratcheting up pressure on Tehran.

On Thursday, the US Treasury and State departments announced separate sanctions against a network of entities and a “shadow fleet” of vessels involved in facilitating and exporting Iranian crude.

However, gains were limited by expectations that OPEC+ will agree to bring back another 411,000 bpd in August when the group meets on Sunday.

On the trade front, the recent US-Vietnam agreement offered some support to crude prices, but overall tariff uncertainty persists as major partners like the EU and Japan have yet to secure trade deals ahead of the July 9 tariff pause deadline.

For the week, Brent crude is on track to post a gain of over 2%, rebounding from its sharpest weekly decline in more than two years.

WTI crude oil futures edged up to $67 per barrel on Friday after the US took fresh steps to restrict the trade of Iranian oil, ratcheting up pressure on Tehran.

On Thursday, the US Treasury and State departments announced separate sanctions against a network of entities and a “shadow fleet” of vessels involved in facilitating and exporting Iranian crude.

However, gains were limited by expectations that OPEC+ will agree to bring back another 411,000 bpd in August when the group meets on Sunday.

On the trade front, the recent US-Vietnam agreement offered some support to crude prices, but overall tariff uncertainty persists as major partners like the EU and Japan have yet to secure trade deals ahead of the July 9 tariff pause deadline.

For the week, WTI crude is on track to post a gain of over 2%, rebounding from its sharpest weekly decline in more than two years.

Shares of Woodside Energy Group and Santos each inched up in early trading on Friday, even as crude oil futures declined.

West Texas Intermediate crude fell 0.7% to settle at $67 per barrel, while Brent crude oil settled below $69, as the US and Iran are set to restart talks on Iran's nuclear program.