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Delek US Holdings Inc (DK) has an average rating of overweight and mean price target of $47.79, according to analysts polled by FactSet.(covers equity, commodity and economic research from major banks and research firms in North America, Asia and Europe. Research providers may contact us here: https://www..com/contact-us)
Diamondback Energy (FANG) has an average rating of overweight and mean price target of $214.84, according to analysts polled by FactSet.(covers equity, commodity and economic research from major banks and research firms in North America, Asia and Europe. Research providers may contact us here: https://www..com/contact-us)
Energy stocks were leaning lower premarket Friday, with the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE) declining by 0.3%.The United States Oil Fund (USO) was down 1.3% and The United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) was 0.2% lower.Front-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil was 0.1% higher at $97.95 per barrel at the New York Mercantile Exchange. Global benchmark North Sea Brent crude oil declined 0.2% to $95.68 per barrel, and natural gas futures were up 0.2% at $2.68 per 1 million British Thermal Units.ConocoPhillips (COP) has sent a team to Venezuela to evaluate the prospects of oil drilling in the country, several media outlets reported, citing a company statement. Shares of ConocoPhillips were marginally higher pre-bell.Petrobras (PBR) said it signed contracts with Petronas Petroleo Brasil to acquire 50% stakes in the Tartaruga Verde and Espadarte - Module III fields in the Campos Basin offshore Brazil for $450 million, regaining full ownership in the assets. Petrobras shares were up 1% premarket.EQT (EQT) and Glencore (GLEN) committed to acquiring an extra 1 million metric tons of liquefied natural gas annually from Commonwealth LNG through 20-year agreements, Reuters reported, citing a regulatory document. EQT stock was 0.6% lower pre-bell.
Oil prices eased on Friday and were headed for a weekly decline after the US-Iran ceasefire deal which effectively slashed the geopolitical risk premium, even as the agreement gets off to a very shaky start.The front-month West Texas Intermediate crude contract was down 0.5% at $97.41 per barrel. Brent futures eased 0.5% to $65.98/bbl.Both contracts were headed for a weekly fall of about 12%."Crude prices try to stabilise below [$]100 following the sharpest weekly drop since last June yet remain underpinned by mixed signals surrounding the proposed peace plan, a roughly 600,000 b/d cut in Saudi production capacity, and the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz since late February," Saxo Bank analysts said.An April 9-dated news article by the Saudi Press Agency citing the Energy Ministry referred to an attack "recently" on a pumping station on the East-West pipeline, which it said caused a loss of about 700,000 barrels in throughput.It did not make mention of the origin of the attack but a source told Reuters on Wednesday that it came from Iran, damaging Saudi Arabia's main alternative route to export markets since the closure of the Strait of Hormuz."Meanwhile, spot Brent transactions continue to clear at notable premiums to futures, underscoring mounting supply stress as refiners scramble to replace disrupted Middle East flows," Saxo Bank added.June Brent futures have retreated below $100 per barrel following the ceasefire announcement. Yet cargoes already at sea priced by Dated Brent, the global benchmark for immediate delivery, remain stubbornly above $120.US President Donald Trump gave a warning to on Thursday amid reports that Tehran has started charging transit fees on tankers seeking to exit the Strait of Hormuz. Shipping through the key waterway remains restricted despite the ceasefire deal."There are reports that Iran is charging fees to tankers going through the Hormuz Strait," Trump said in a social media post on Truth Social, "They better not be and, if they are, they better stop now!"According to TRM Labs' Thursday note, Iran's new toll framework requires payments of up to $2 million per vessel payable in cryptocurrency or Chinese yuan generating an estimated $20 million in daily revenue for Tehran.Further tightening the squeeze, Russia's Tass news agency reported, citing a senior Iranian source, that Iran will continue to limit the movement of ships.The source reportedly said that under the current ceasefire, "fewer than 15 ships per day" will be permitted to sail via the Strait of Hormuz, according to the report.All eyes are now on high-stakes talks between a US delegation and Iranian officials scheduled for this weekend.
Gold futures eased early Friday even as the dollar weakened after a report showed U.S. inflation surged in March on higher gasoline prices, cutting hopes for a cut to interest rates from the Federal Reserve.Gold for May delivery was last seen down $31.10 to US$4,786.90 per ounce.The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported the March Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose to a 3.3% annualized rate in March, the highest since May 2024, up from 2.4% in February, but matching expectations, according to Marketwatch. Core CPI, excluding volatile food and energy prices, rose 2.6%, up from 2.5% a month earlier but came in under the consensus estimate for a 2.7% rise.The Bureau said the rise came on higher gasoline prices "which accounted for nearly three quarters of the monthly all items increase". Fuel prices have surged since the United States and Israel launched their war on Iran on Feb. 28 and Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz, cutting off 20% of daily oil supply from Persian Gulf countries.Gold remains well below its Jan. 29 record high of US$5,354.80 per ounce as rising inflation ends hope for lower U.S. interest rates. The CME FedWatch Tool expects the Federal Reserve to leave interest rates unchanged for the remainder of the year, bearish for gold since it pays no interest.The dollar was lower early, with the ICE dollar index last seen down 0.14 points to 98.69. Treasury yields were mixed, with the U.S. two-year note last seen paying 3.793%, down 2.0 basis points, while the yield on the 10-year note was up 2.5 points to 4.306%.
"Overall, and through the monthly volatility, the Canadian labour market still appears quite weak, which should limit the ability of the current oil price shock to widely spread into broader inflationary pressures, enabling the Bank of Canada to hold interest rates at their current level throughout 2026," says CIBC's Andrew Grantham after the release Friday of Canada's LFS employment data for March.Grantham notes Canadian employment increased in March following two consecutive declines, but he says the rebound was "no better than consensus expectations and failed to bring the unemployment rate lower".Among highlights, Grantham notes the 14,000 increase in employment was almost exactly in line with the consensus forecast of 15,000, but only partly reversed a cumulative decline of more than 100,000 in the prior two months; the modest increase in employment during March kept pace with labor force growth, and the unemployment rate held steady at 6.7%. By sector, professional services and natural resources, alongside "other" services, led the increases, with those gains partly offset by declines in sectors such as finance and food & accommodation.Overall job growth was driven by part-time positions, with full-time work unable to recoup any of the ground lost in the prior month, says Grantham.Despite general softness in most labor market indicators recently, Grantham says hourly wage growth for permanent employees accelerated "sharply", to 5.1%, although he adds that partly reflected base effects from a year ago and the year-over-year rate should ease again in the months ahead.
Financial stocks were leaning lower premarket Friday, with the State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLF) declining by 0.1%.The Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares (FAS) was 0.3% lower and its bearish counterpart Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares (FAZ) was up 0.5%.Switzerland's criminal court said Friday it has discontinued a proceeding against UBS (UBS) in connection with alleged money laundering in a case involving Mozambican state-owned companies. UBS Group shares were 0.9% higher pre-bell.HSBC (HSBC) and Anchorpoint Financial, a Standard Chartered joint venture, have been granted stablecoin issuer licenses by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, the regulator said. HSBC stock was 0.6% higher premarket.A Morgan Stanley (MS) affiliated entity is planning to participate as a cornerstone investor in Victory Giant Technology Huizhou's planned listing in Hong Kong that could raise about $2 billion, Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Morgan Stanley shares were slightly declining premarket.
AbbVie (ABBV) is expected to report first-quarter earnings within its guidance range, but that may not be enough to improve sentiment toward the drugmaker, RBC Capital Markets said in a Friday client note.The brokerage expects AbbVie to report per-share earnings of $2.59 for the first quarter, while the current consensus on FactSet is for non-GAAP EPS of $2.83.Earlier in April, AbbVie revised its first-quarter adjusted EPS outlook to a range of $2.56 to $2.60. The company said it expected a pre-tax charge of $744 million related to acquired in-process research and development and other expenses to negatively impact its bottom line by $0.41 a share."We think the bar is high for (AbbVie), and 'in-line' results may not be enough to turn the tide on the negative sentiment," RBC analyst Trung Huynh wrote in the note. "Unless the company delivers a clear beat, we see the current malaise persisting into (the second quarter of 2026)."AbbVie is scheduled to release its latest quarterly results on April 29.Sales of the company's immunology drugs, Skyrizi and Rinvoq, in the first quarter are tracking with consensus and guidance, according to RBC. The brokerage anticipates a "small" year-over-year decline in AbbVie's oncology segment, impacted by Inflation Reduction Act pricing erosion and decreasing volume for cancer drug Imbruvica.RBC forecasts the company to report revenue of $14.82 billion, while the Street is looking for $14.73 billion.The brokerage has an outperform rating on AbbVie's stock with a price target of $260.
Health care stocks were mixed pre-bell Friday, with the iShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) 0.5% higher and the State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLV) marginally lower.Telix Pharmaceuticals (TLX) shares were up more than 5% after the company said the US Food and Drug Administration accepted its resubmitted new drug application for its investigational glioma imaging agent Pixclara.Abbott Laboratories (ABT) has been ordered by a jury in Chicago to pay $53 million in compensatory damages to a group of families related to four cases over its infant formula, the Chicago Tribune reported. Shares of Abbott Laboratories were down 0.9% premarket.Vanda Pharmaceuticals (VNDA) said it is calling on the US Food and Drug Administration to withdraw a proposal in the regulator's fiscal 2027 Congressional Budget Justification that would extend drug review timelines. Vanda Pharmaceuticals stock was up more than 1% pre-bell.
The broad market exchange-traded fund SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) was up 0.1% and the actively traded Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) was 0.1% higher in Friday's premarket activity amid lingering geopolitical uncertainty and the release of consumer inflation data.US stock futures were mixed, with S&P 500 Index futures up 0.03%, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures slipping 0.04%, and Nasdaq futures gaining 0.1% before the start of regular trading.US consumer prices rose 0.9% in March, in line with expectations, compared with a 0.3% gain in the prior month.The University of Michigan's preliminary consumer sentiment index for April and the factory orders data for February are due to be released at 10 am ET.In premarket activity, bitcoin was up by 0.1%. Among cryptocurrency ETFs, the cryptocurrency fund ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BITO) was 0.3% higher, Ether ETF (EETH) advanced 0.2%, and Bitcoin & Ether Market Cap Weight ETF (BETH) gained 0.3%.Power Play:Health CareThe State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLV) retreated marginally by 0.01%, the Vanguard Health Care Index Fund (VHT) was up 0.8%, while the iShares US Healthcare ETF (IYH) was inactive. The iShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) slipped 0.4%.Telix Pharmaceuticals (TLX) stock was up more than 9% premarket after the company said the US Food and Drug Administration accepted its resubmitted new drug application for its investigational glioma imaging agent Pixclara.Winners and Losers:ConsumerThe State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLP) was flat and the Vanguard Consumer Staples Index Fund ETF Shares (VDC) was up 0.8%. The iShares US Consumer Staples ETF (IYK) advanced 0.4%. The State Street Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLY) gained 0.1%. The VanEck Retail ETF (RTH) was inactive, while the State Street SPDR S&P Retail ETF (XRT) was down 0.4%.Shake Shack (SHAK) shares were up more than 3% pre-bell after Mizuho upgraded the company's stock to outperform from neutral and lifted its price target to $120 from $100.FinancialThe State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLF) retreated 0.2%. Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares (FAS) was down 0.6%, while its bearish counterpart Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares (FAZ) was 0.8% higher.SLM (SLM) shares were up more than 2% pre-bell. RBC cut the company's price target to $28 from $32 while maintaining its outperform rating.TechnologyThe State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) gained 0.2%, and the iShares US Technology ETF (IYW) was 0.2% higher, while the iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF (IGM) was up 0.01%. Among semiconductor ETFs, the State Street SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF (XSD) was 0.7% higher, while the iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX) rose by 0.7%.Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM) shares were up more than 2% in premarket activity after the company reported higher Q1 net revenue.IndustrialThe State Street Industrial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLI) advanced 0.3%, while the Vanguard Industrials Index Fund (VIS) gained 0.3% and the iShares US Industrials ETF (IYJ) was inactive.A. O. Smith Corporation (AOS) stock was up more than 1% before the opening bell after Goldman Sachs raised its price target to $61 from $69.EnergyThe iShares US Energy ETF (IYE) was flat, while the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE) was down by 0.2%.Eni (E) stock was up nearly 1% before Friday's opening bell after the company said it has invested $70 million in Nouveau Monde Graphite (NMG). Nouveau stock was down 9%.CommoditiesFront-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil gained 0.1% to reach $97.95 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Natural gas retreated by 1.5% to $2.63 per 1 million British Thermal Units. The United States Oil Fund (USO) was down by 1.8%, while the United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) was 1.2% lower.Gold futures for May were down by 0.6% at $4,790.50 an ounce on the Comex. Silver futures declined by 0.9% to $75.76 an ounce. SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) was 0.01% higher, and the iShares Silver Trust (SLV) advanced by 0.3%.
After a string of job losses to begin the year, Canada's labour market had "some signs of stabilization" in March, says Royce Mendes at Desjardins after the release of Friday's Labour Force Survey (LFS) showing the Canadian economy added back 14,000 jobs in March, leaving the unemployment rate unchanged at 6.7%.But, he adds, all of the new positions were part-time, with full-time jobs "stable" after a "devastating" decline of 108,000 in February.Mendes also notes while the year-over-year pace of average hourly earnings accelerated in March, the pickup was due to compositional effects as Statistics Canada said average hourly earnings rose just 3.6% when keeping the composition fixed, suggesting wages "aren't actually heating up."The bank's tracking for Q1 gross domestic product remains around 1.5% to 2.0%, roughly in line with the Bank of Canada's January forecast.Overall, Mendes adds, there's nothing in Friday's LFS to suggest that the economy is perking up. Despite upgrading its oil price forecasts, Desjardins continues to believe central bankers will remain on the sidelines for the remainder of this year, given persistent slack in the economy.
Consumer stocks were mixed pre-bell Friday, with the State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLP) slightly lower and the State Street Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLY) advancing by 0.1%.Brown-Forman (BF.A, BF.B) was approached by Sazerac about a potential transaction amid ongoing discussions with French spirits company Pernod Ricard, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Brown-Forman stock was up more than 1% premarket.TAL Education Group (TAL), Baidu (BIDU), along with several other venture capital entities, participated in the Series B investment round for Chinese artificial intelligence developer ShengShu Technology, the AI company said. TAL Education Group shares were up more than 1% pre-bell.JD.com (JD) shares were 0.7% higher after the company said it closed its offering of 10 billion Chinese renminbi ($1.46 billion) of senior unsecured notes.
Technology stocks were edging higher premarket Friday, with the State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLK) up 0.3% and the State Street SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF (XSD) advancing by 1.2%.Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM) shares were up more than 2% after the company reported Q1 net revenue of 1.134 trillion New Taiwan dollars ($35.69 billion), up from NT$839.25 billion.Lumentum Holdings (LITE) is seeing demand for its optical components among the US hyperscalers accelerating, putting it on course to fill its order books through 2028, Bloomberg News reported, citing Chief Executive Michael Hurlston. Shares of Lumentum Holdings were up more than 5% pre-bell.ASE Technology (ASX) stock was up more than 1% after the company reported unaudited net revenue of 61.58 billion New Taiwan dollars ($1.94 billion) for March, up 18% sequentially and 15% from a year ago.
Chicago soybean oil and Malaysian palm oil slipped on Friday, posting weekly losses due to crude oil price corrections following the announcement of a US-Iran ceasefire.The May soybean oil contract on the Chicago Board of Trade edged lower by 0.8% to 67.18 cents per pound in early trade, and was set to decline 2.5% over the week.The May CBOT soybean contract held steady amid prospects of additional Chinese demand, with the Trump-Xi summit in sight. It rose 0.3% to $11.68 per bushel on Friday, and was on track for a 0.4% weekly gain.However, Mark Soderberg of ADM Investor Services warned China's status as a weapon supplier to Iran could complicate negotiations. US President Donald Trump recently issued a 50% tariff threat for any country selling military goods to Iran.Meanwhile, the US Department of Agriculture's latest supply and demand estimates offered little support to the market, with US soybean ending stocks for the 2025/26 season unchanged from March forecast of 350 million bushels.The export outlook decreased by 35 million bushels, but the soybean crush forecast increased by the same volume.The agency also maintained its outlook for soybean oil consumption in biofuels at 14 billion pounds."The overall tone of this report was relatively neutral with limited impact, and US soybean futures continued to trade in a range," price reporting agency MySteel said.In Asia, Malaysian palm oil futures retreated more than 2% on Friday, bringing weekly losses to at least 6%, as industry data showed a month-over-month increase in production and as crude oil prices eased over the week.The Bursa Malaysia Derivatives' May and June crude palm oil contracts closed at 4,500 Malaysian ringgit ($1,135.93) per metric ton and 4,538 ringgit/mt, respectively.Fundamentals were mixed, with domestic output increasing by 7.2% to 1.4 million metric tons in March versus February levels, but with exports jumping 40.7% to 1.6 mmt.The data provided by the Malaysian Palm Oil Board also showed a 16.1% month-over-month drop in inventories to 2.3 mmt.Demand for Malaysian palm oil is expected to increase once Indonesia begins the phased implementation of its 50% palm-based biodiesel program from July 1, to mitigate supply risks caused by geopolitical tensions.According to the timeline released by Indonesia's energy ministry, all biodiesel users must fully adopt the B50 standard by 2028.Prior to the full implementation of the mandate, the government will reportedly allow unsubsidized diesel to have 40% palm oil in the blend in 2027, while keeping subsidized diesel at a 50% blend, according to multiple media outlets.Rising biofuel demand could boost palm oil prices going forward.AmInvestment Bank, as cited by Dow Jones, projects a potential bullish reversal from the current bearish momentum, if futures consistently break the 4,675 ringgit/mt to 4,710 ringgit/mt resistance zone.In the US, the May-dated ethanol futures on the NYMEX extended losses for a third consecutive session on Thursday, slipping 1.28% to about $1.93 per gallon.The USDA's latest report showed that ethanol makers will use 5.6 billion bushels of corn in the 2025/26 marketing year, unchanged from the March outlook.
Chinese producer prices ended 41 consecutive months of declines in March, returning to inflation for the first time since 2022.Factory-gate prices rose 0.5% last month, reversing the 0.9% decline in February, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics released Friday.Median estimates by analysts polled by Bloomberg and Reuters saw inflation of 0.4%.Analysts at ING believe that the return to inflation in producer prices could translate to reflationary momentum across the Chinese economy.Producer price inflation was most evident in a 5.2% year-over-year increase in the oil and gas extraction industry prices, up from a 14.8% fall in the first two months, ING analysts said.However, Macquarie analysts say the PPI rebound is a one-off cost shock rather than reflation, also due to oil prices.Non-ferrous metals, computer and telecom, and coal and steel producer prices also drove upward PPI, Macquarie said.Meanwhile, the consumer price index, a measure of inflation, rose 1% year over year in March, slower than the 1.3% increase in February.Chinese consumer price increases were slower than the 1.2% rise expected by economists polled by Reuters.Core CPI, which excludes food and energy prices, went up 1.1%.The deceleration was due to normal price declines following the Chinese New Year festivities, ING said.Pork prices slid 11.5% year over year, the National Bureau of Statistics said.On a monthly basis, CPI ticked down 0.7%, the statistics bureau said.
GMV Minerals (GMV.V) Friday said drilling at its Mexican Hat Gold project in Arizona will start in the next week and is expected to last approximately two months.A statement noted 30 holes will be drilled, amounting to near 7,000 meters of diamond drill core. The drilling program is primarily infill designed to confirm and upgrade the resource model from an inferred mineral resource, the statement said.GMV confirms that it is fully funded for the 2026 drill and field season.GMV shares closed up $0.005, to $0.20, on Thursday on the TSX Venture Exchange.
Yuzhou Group (HKG:1628) recorded contracted sales of 482 million yuan in March, with a sales area of 37,351 square meters, according to a Friday Hong Kong bourse filing.The property company's average selling price stood at approximately 12,907 yuan per square meter for the month.In the first quarter of 2026, the accumulated sales amount was 1.37 billion yuan, with a sales area of 108,232 square meters and an average selling price of 12,700 yuan per square meter.
Energy stocks were leaning lower premarket Friday, with the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE) declining by 0.2%.The United States Oil Fund (USO) was down 1% and the United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) was 0.3% lower.Front-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil was 0.3% lower at $97.55 per barrel at the New York Mercantile Exchange. Global benchmark North Sea Brent crude oil fell 0.6% to $95.38 per barrel, and natural gas futures were down 0.1% at $2.67 per 1 million British Thermal Units.ConocoPhillips (COP) has sent a team to Venezuela to evaluate the prospects of oil drilling in the country, several media outlets reported, citing a company statement. Shares of ConocoPhillips were 0.4% lower pre-bell.
Alco (HKG:0328) said co-chairpersons Liao Liping and Tian Yi have resigned effective Friday to devote more time to their personal endeavors, according to a same-day Hong Kong bourse filing.The consumer electronics company, on the same day, named Pan Ying as its new chair.Pan has served as the CEO of Shengjun Capital since March 2021.
Kong Sun's (HKG:0295) solar power plants generated around 58,204 megawatt-hours of electricity in the first quarter of 2026, down from 73,664 megawatt-hours a year prior, according to a Friday Hong Kong bourse filing.As of March 31, the electricity services provider's total installed capacity stood at 300 megawatts.