FINWIRES · TerminalLIVE
FINWIRES

Crude Oil Prices Climb as Shipping Remains Blocked in Strait of Hormuz

-- Crude oil prices rose on Thursday amid a lack of progress in efforts to end the war in the Middle East, with shipping disruptions remaining in the Strait of Hormuz.

Brent crude at last look gained 1.8% to US$103.69/barrel and West Texas Intermediate crude climbed 1.8% to $94.62/barrel. This comes after larger-than-expected gasoline and distillate stock draws in the U.S. and continued restrictions in the strait despite an extended ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran, Reuters said in a Thursday report.

"The oil market is repricing expectations with little sign of progress in finding a resolution in the Persian Gulf," Reuters quoted ING analysts as saying in a note.

Iran on Wednesday seized two ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz and the U.S. is maintaining its blockade of Iran's trade by sea, suggesting continuing disruptions to shipments, analysts said, according to the report.

Related Articles

Mining & Metals

BMO Initiates Coverage of Meridian Mining with an Outperform Rating, C$3.00 Price Target

BMO Capital Markets on Thursday initiated coverage of Meridian Mining (MNO.TO) with an outperform rating and C$3.00 price target.Meridian's Cabacal gold-copper deposit in Brazil stands out as a low-capex, low-complexity, and low-risk project, BMO said.The past-producing mine represents the flagship asset for Meridian and is central to other targets along the Cabacal belt, giving Meridian the opportunity to develop additional assets within the land package, BMO added.Construction is expected to commence in the second quarter of 2027, and Meridian's management is advancing permitting, engineering, and financing milestones, according to BMO.Price: $1.84, Change: $-0.01, Percent Change: -0.54%

$MNO.TO
Australia

Lam Research Likely to Benefit from Healthy Wafer Fabrication Equipment Landscape, RBC Says

Lam Research (LRCX) is likely to benefit from healthy wafer fabrication equipment environment for the next two to three years driven by generative AI demand and memory tightness, RBC Capital Markets said in a Wednesday research report.The brokerage said it raised its fiscal 2026 and 2027 EPS guidance to $5.65 and $7.72, respectively, from $5.30 and $6.84 earlier.The company's fiscal Q3 beat was particularly driven by strength in DRAM and improving NAND outlook amid continued momentum in high bandwidth memory, analysts wrote.China exposure declined during the quarter, and the company expects further declines as global spending accelerates, but overall, China demand remains steady, according to the note.RBC reiterated its outperform rating on the stock and boosted its price target to $310 from $290.Price: $261.88, Change: $-3.68, Percent Change: -1.38%

$LRCX
Asia Markets

Swiss Market Index Recovers; Nestlé, Galderma Shares Rise

The Swiss Market Index broke its three-day losing streak on Thursday, closing 1.38% in the green, amid a busy day of corporate financial updates and private sector data releases.Nestlé (NESN.SW) delivered an organic sales growth of 3.5% year over year in the first quarter, including a negative impact of 90 basis points from the precautionary recall of batches of its infant formula products globally, with total group sales reaching 21.32 billion francs. Real internal growth came in at 1.2% over the period. The consumer goods giant's stock added 5.89% at closing."A widespread, RIG led beat underpins maintained guidance (with consensus currently at the bottom of the range for sales growth guidance). It is good to see coffee back on song after last year's price squeeze, with RIG of 3.5% and organic sales growth of 9.3%," RBC Capital Markets said in a quick take note, describing the results as "impressive."Galderma Group (GALD.SW) also saw its shares rise 6.60% as it reported a "strong" start to the year, with net sales climbing to $1.47 billion in the first quarter from the year-ago $1.13 billion. For full-year 2026, the dermatology company reaffirmed its guidance of net sales growth between 17% and 20% at constant currency, expecting its exposure to US tariffs to remain "manageable."Other Switzerland-listed heavyweights that posted trading updates included pharmaceutical major Roche (RO.SW), testing and certification company SGS (SGSN.SW), and escalators and elevators manufacturer Schindler (SCHP.SW).On the macroeconomic front, Switzerland signed an investment protection agreement with Saudi Arabia during Swiss President Guy Parmelin's official visit to the Middle Eastern country. The deal is set to become effective following completion of internal approval procedures in both countries.Zooming out to the euro area, the seasonally adjusted S&P Global Flash Eurozone Composite PMI Output Index fell to a 17-month low of 48.6 in April from 50.7 in March. The latest reading marks the first time the index dropped below the neutral 50 threshold in 16 months.

$^SSMI$GALD.SW$NESN.SW$RO.SW$SCHP.SW$SGSN.SW