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2026-05-29 21:23:29
[US Natural Gas Prices Hit 16-Week High as Warm Weather Boosts Cooling Demand, Production and LNG Exports Both Decline] ⑴ US natural gas futures rose about 3% on Friday, hitting a 16-week high. The July contract closed at $3.368 per million British thermal units (MMBtu), up about 15% for the week and about 20% for the month, driven by warmer weather and higher-than-expected cooling demand over the next two weeks. ⑵ Data shows that since May, average natural gas production in the 48 contiguous US states has fallen to 109.5 billion cubic feet per day, down from 109.8 billion in April and 110.6 billion in December. Meanwhile, due to spring maintenance at several plants, average LNG export plant intakes have fallen from a record high of 18.8 billion cubic feet per day in April to 17.1 billion since May. (3) Weather forecasts indicate that the weather will be mostly warmer than normal until June 13th, which will increase the amount of fuel used for air conditioning in gas-fired power plants. Approximately 40% of electricity generation in the United States comes from gas-fired power plants. Analysts predict that total demand in the 48 contiguous states will slightly decrease from 100.3 billion cubic feet this week to 99 billion next week, before rebounding to 101.5 billion two weeks later. (4) Currently, only one LNG carrier is sailing directly from the United States to its destination, compared to a peak of five carriers in the past week. The United States is the world's largest producer, consumer, and exporter of natural gas.
