Articles filed under Natural Gas Prices

October Nymex natural gas futures settled higher Thursday on some bullish implications from the latest storage data and potential lingering strong demand on the possibility that hot weather may continue through September.

North American natural gas futures were once again above the $2.00/MMBtu mark as the market turned to the post-summer season.

Natural gas forwards slipped at the front of the curve for most locations alongside trimmed demand expectations for September, while hubs in Canada posted gains ahead of the nation’s first LNG export terminal.

In its debut run at the front of the Nymex natural gas futures curve, the October contract mustered momentum after a government inventory report met expectations and proved bullish relative to historical norms.

Natural gas futures reversed early steeper losses but held the downside following the latest storage data, which outlined a largely expected injection for the week ended Aug. 23.

September baseload natural gas prices showed some modest gains day/day on the last day of bidweek trading Wednesday, but not enough to reverse a downward trend from August as prices reflected summer’s demand firmly in the rearview mirror.

In its first session at the front of the curve, the October Nymex gas futures contract early Thursday was lower and in a holding pattern amid an evolving supply/demand outlook.

Gasping on its final day as the lead contract, September Nymex natural gas futures pushed back against early losses to a $1.856/MMBtu low and rolled off the board with a gain.

Weak natural gas prices through most of 2024 challenged the industry’s profitability, but they helped to dramatically ease the pace of U.S. inflation and, by extension, nudged the Federal Reserve (Fed) to the doorstep of interest rate cuts.

In its final run as the prompt month, the September natural gas futures contract opened lower, with steady production and approaching fall weather trumping expectations for a favorable government inventory print.