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

1009 ET -- Palantir Technologies is vying for companies to resist dependence on AI models, Benchmark analyst Yi Fu Lee says. The company spent a lot of time discussing "AI sovereignty," arguing that enterprise companies are prioritizing ownership and control of their data and AI models, rather than relying on frontier AI providers such as OpenAI and Anthropic. This comes as model providers are cutting prices amid complaints by executives about the cost of AI. Palantir is positioning its sovereign AI architecture as a control layer that sits above the models, allowing companies to retain information about their data and intellectual property, Lee says. (katherine.hamilton@wsj.com)

0959 ET--Palantir Technologies investors are debating whether the company can grow beyond its U.S.-focused business model, Benchmark analyst Yi Fu Lee says. "The key investor debate is increasingly shifting from whether the company can grow to whether its success can ultimately broaden beyond an exceptionally strong U.S. franchise," Lee says. Palantir has proven itself as a high-clearance provider for customers such as the U.S. government and military, which has driven many of its multi-million-dollar deals, Lee says. Lee believes Palantir's current valuation limits tolerance for any slowdown in U.S. demand, which is why Lee remains sidelined, rating the stock as a hold. Shares gain 20%. (katherine.hamilton@wsj.com)

0840 ET - European stock indexes are set to hit a raft of new records as positive earnings stories, a tech rally and low oil prices buoy the continent's stocks. The Europe-wide Stoxx 600 is on pace for its first record close in over a month. In Paris, the French CAC 40 gains 0.3%, on track for its first record close since February. Gains for index heavyweight Schneider Electric--up 2.9%--and chip maker STMicroelectronics--up 3.8%--lift the index. The German DAX trades up 0.8%, extending Monday's record close. The Dutch AEX jumps 1% to a new high as ASML climbs 3.5%. Spain's IBEX 35 and the Italian FTSE MIB are also poised for new records. London's FTSE 100 is a laggard, rising 0.35% to hover slightly below its own record. (josephmichael.stonor@wsj.com)

0838 ET - Record-low water levels along Germany's Rhine river could shave 0.3 percentage points off the country's economic growth this year, Carsten Brzeski at ING says in a note. Water levels along the Rhine--which carries around 80% of Germany's inland waterway freight--have fallen to a record low. This threatens supply chains and industrial production, as ships are operating with sharply reduced loads, he says. Research from the Kiel Institute found that the 2018 drought cut inland shipping by about 25%, reduced industrial output by roughly 1%, and shaved around 0.3 percentage points off German GDP growth. "The risk is high that this time around, the economic impact will be larger," although the country should avoid recession, Brzeski says. (don.forbes@wsj.com)

0810 ET - Hugo Boss gross margin performance and reiteration of earnings guidance should be viewed positively, analysts at UBS Robert Krankowski and Zuzanna Pusz say in a research note. The German premium-fashion company posted a gross margin of 64.9% for the second quarter, which came in stronger than expected. This led the company to back its EBIT outlook of between 300 million and 350 million euros in 2026. "This could be viewed as evidence that the turnaround is gaining traction, helping offset concerns around softer sales," the analysts say. Shares are up 0.1%. (andrea.figueras@wsj.com)

0753 ET - Following Johnson Matthey's completed sale of Catalyst Technologies, the chemicals group now has greater agency over its future, Jefferies' Helena Xu and Marcus Dunford-Castro write. The completed 1.325 billion pound sale to Honeywell means the narrative around the London-listed group "now turns on Johnson Matthey's own delivery rather than deal risk or macro-led sentiment." Margin growth in the group's clean air division is key to the investment case for the company, the analysts say. Johnson Matthey's acquisition of Cormetech is a welcome strategic pivot, given it taps into the fast-expanding U.S. data center pipeline, they say. The analysts reinstate their coverage of the stock at buy. Johnson Matthey shares rise 5.9%. (josephmichael.stonor@wsj.com)

0732 ET - Metro Bank Holdings shares took a hit from profit-taking by investors as the U.K. bank's customer deposits dipped and capital and liquidity ratios declined, AJ Bell's Russ Mould says. Customer deposits fell to 13.22 billion pounds from 13.36 billion pounds, while the CET1 capital ratio slipped to 12.3% from 12.8%. Metro Bank has diverged from the industry trend for branch closures and has focused on specialist and commercial markets rather than consumer lending activities, AJ Bell says. "These initiatives do appear to be bearing some fruit but the reaction to [Tuesday's] update is a reminder that the Metro Bank may well be kept on a short leash by the market thanks to its less than stellar long-term showing as a public company," AJ Bell's Mould writes. Shares fall 8.7% to 164 pence. (michael.hennessey@wsj.com)

0732 ET - Sterling could fall slightly over the remainder of the year if the Bank of England refrains from raising interest rates and the U.K. economy weakens, Metzler analyst Leon Ferdinand Bost says in a note. "This is even more true against the euro if the European Central Bank raises interest rates again in September and the eurozone economy continues to perform solidly, as we expect." However, fiscal concerns shouldn't prove a structural burden for the cu8rrency, he says. Prime Minister Andy Burnham probably won't overstep the fiscal rules, instead delivering a gradual reduction in the budget deficit, he says. Metzler expects the euro to rise to 0.88 pounds by year-end from 0.8464 currently. (renae.dyer@wsj.com)

0711 ET - The global oil-supply shock caused by the Iran war has removed more than 2.6 billion barrels from the market, says Saudi Aramco CEO Amin H. Nasser. Emergency stock releases and alternative export routes reduce the net supply loss to about 1.8 billion barrels, he says. Even if Hormuz reopens immediately, replenishing depleted commercial inventories and strategic reserves would take up to 18 months at an average rate of 2.1 million barrels a day, materially adding to crude demand through 2027 and likely beyond, Nasser says. The war between Iran and the U.S. and its regional allies is in its sixth month, with shipping through the Strait of Hormuz still largely disrupted. (farhan.rafid@wsj.com)

0709 ET - Caterpillar posts total sales and revenues of $20.54 billion in the second quarter. The equipment maker's top line grew 24% from last year and came in ahead of Wall Street models. "This is the first time in company history that we have generated over $20 billion in sales and revenues in a single quarter," CEO Joe Creed says. "Strong order rates and a growing backlog reflect broadening momentum across all three of our primary segments." Looking ahead, Caterpillar says it now expects mid-to-high teens growth in sales and revenues this year. That compares with a prior outlook for low double-digit sales and revenue growth. Shares gain 7.2% premarket. (connor.hart@wsj.com)

0614 ET - BP's new CEO Meg O'Neill wastes no time putting her stamp on the business, AJ Bell's investment director Russ Mould writes. She has put BP's U.S. biogas business Archaea up for sale just days after doing the same for its U.K. North Sea assets. O'Neill will be aware she can't rely on oil and gas prices remaining high forever and will need to ensure the company can prosper when the backdrop isn't as supportive, he adds. BP shares rise 1% to 557.70 pence. (adam.whittaker@wsj.com)

0611 ET - India's central bank is likely to keep its policy repo rate at 5.25% on Wednesday, according to 12 out of 13 economists polled by The Wall Street Journal. "Rising inflation has reduced the scope for policymakers to remain on the sidelines, while the renewed weakness in the rupee will be a factor too," said Shilan Shah of Capital Economics, who expects the Reserve Bank of India to raise its repo rate by 25 bps to 5.50%. However, HSBC economists believe that India is in a "sweet spot" given better growth, inflation and external finances data recently, and that RBI may prefer to see firmer inflation prints before making a move.