Natural Gas Futures Slump Five Percent

Natural Gas Futures Slump Five Percent

Natural gas futures slumped again Monday—falling five percent as the contract for December delivery expired. This came on the heels of a boost in prices carried over from the previous week’s seven percent weekly advance amid speculation a recent bout of mild U.S. weather was beginning to give way to cooler temperatures across most parts of the U.S.

Gas futures for December delivery settled down 17.8 cents, or 5.03%, at $3.364 a million British thermal units on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The January contract ended the day down 14 cents, or 3.8%, at $3.525.

Though recent forecast revisions have begun to reflect a near-term cooling trend, analysts said it wasn’t enough to overcome the record inventory already in storage. Meanwhile, forecasts out to mid-December now show the weather may even warm up again before winter finally arrives, which could mean that inventories will continue to grow instead of decline as is normal this time of year. U.S. natural gas stockpiles stood at 3.852 trillion cubic feet as of last week, just shy of the all-time high of 3.867 hit in early November.

Elsewhere in energy news…This morning, ERCOT trades for tomorrow’s peak hours went through in the upper $20’s and off peak trades went through in the low $20’s. Peak load for tomorrow is expected to be about 40,000 MW. High temperatures throughout most of ERCOT are forecast to be in the 50’s and 60’s for the next couple of weeks. Forward heat rates were stronger today as the summer was up about 40 ticks.

Forecasts may vary, but your business’ electricity rate doesn’t have to. When it comes to buying electricity, timing is everything. At Live Energy, we keep our finger on the market’s pulse—locking in a low rate with the right electricity provider has never been easier. For more information on how we can help you find the right electricity plan for your business, contact us at (877) 810-7770 today.

 

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