Energy & Utilities Roundup: Market Talk

The latest Market Talks covering Energy and Utilities. Published exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires at 4:20 ET, 12:20 ET and 16:50 ET.

1525 ET – Crude futures post their first weekly loss in five weeks, retreating after a New Year rally on increased Russia sanctions, winter weather demand and a two-monthlong slide in U.S. stockpiles. “Crude still lacks a sense of direction, as President Trump continues to raise the prospect of trade wars which could cause crude prices to rally, however, also is now calling for OPEC to bring back more production,” Alex Hodes of StoneX says in a note. So far Trump’s presidency has “played out largely as predicted,” he adds, but questions the effectiveness of plans to lift U.S. output with domestic production already at record highs and producers trying to do more with less while giving priority to returning cash to shareholders. WTI is down 4.1% on the week at $74.66 a barrel, and Brent falls 2.8% to $78.50 a barrel. Today the benchmarks settle up 0.1% and 0.3%, respectively. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)