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2025-08-01 21:56:42
Why Did Natural Gas Prices Suddenly Plunge? Weather Forecasts Are to Blame. ⑴ U.S. natural gas futures prices fell on Friday, primarily due to forecasts for cooler-than-expected temperatures in the coming weeks, which reduced demand for natural gas. ⑵ September natural gas futures on the New York Mercantile Exchange fell 0.6% to $3.09 per million British thermal units (MMBtu). ⑶ Robert DiDona, president of Energy Ventures Analysis, noted that the short-term weather pattern is less bullish than in previous weeks, which will lead to reduced demand for natural gas for power generation. ⑷ LSEG estimates a degree cold day (CDD) of 235 for the next two weeks, indicating a decline in cooling demand. ⑸ In addition, data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration showed that natural gas inventories increased by 48 billion cubic feet in the week ending July 25, far exceeding analysts' expectations of a 37 billion cubic feet increase. ⑹ This increase was more than double the 18 billion cubic feet increase in the same period last year, leaving inventory levels 6.7% above the five-year average. ⑺ Gary Cunningham, director of market research at Tradition Energy, expects the September contract to fluctuate in the range of $3 to $3.2, but the winter contract is oversold due to improved storage levels and still has the risk of rising in the long term.
