NYMEX May gas claws back ground ceded last week on colder forecast

摘要

The front-month NYMEX natural gas futures contract regained some strength Monday after falling a total of 4 cents last week, largely as a result of an expected decrease in temperatures. May settled at $2.708/MMBtu, up 4.4 cents from Friday’s close. The contract traded in a range of $2.653/MMBtu to $2.721/MMBtu on Monday. “Prices are trying to hold at the $2.70 level. It is an encouraging, not bullish, sign that prices have stuck at this level, because it indicates that we are forming a base for prices going forward into summer,” said Jay Levine, president of brokerage and research firm Enerjay. “Looking at the current market fundamentals, it is a question of demand. Supply is not in doubt, but it is the level of demand that we need to look at.” In the short term, a forecast for colder temperatures across the US is boosting demand expectations.