US natural gas futures gained over 2.2 percent on Monday on forecasts for more cold weather over the next two weeks. After gaining 4 percent on Friday, front-month gas futures on the New York Mercantile Exchange rose 6.8 cents to $3.071 per million British thermal units at 9:30 am EST (1430 GMT). Earlier Monday, the front-month was up over 5 percent.
Weather models for the lower 48 US states called for much colder-than-normal temperatures, with 543 heating degree days (HDD) expected over the next two weeks. That is well over the 508 HDDs forecast on Friday and the 462 HDD normal for this time of year, according to Thomson Reuters Analytics. Production was forecast to ease to 71.1 billion cubic feet per day on Monday from 71.9 bcfd on Friday, according to Thomson Reuters Analytics. That compared with 67.3 bcfd a year ago and a 30-day moving average of 73.1 bcfd. Production peaked at 74.1 bcfd on December 19. Consumption, meanwhile, was expected to rise to 99.7 bcfd on Tuesday and 110.2 bcfd on Wednesday, from 99.2 bcfd on Monday.
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