LONDON (Commodity Online): Another week and another fresh low for the January Natural Gas contract. US gas prices were off slightly on the day, as the weather outlook points to no relief in sight from the warmer-than-normal forecast.
We all wondered what would happen if cold weather did not save the gas market, as occurred the past two winters. The answer: a string of fresh lows along the price curve. January shed three cents, closing at $3.10 per MMBtu.
Losses thinned out the curve, as calendar 2012 was down two cents, to $3.69, and calendar 2013 slipped a penny, to $4.01.
Futures volumes are off about a third from week-ago levels, as many buyers and sellers have concluded business for the year. The weather outlook, while bearish overall, picked up a bullish twist, with cold weather in the near- and mid-term in the Southwest.
Still, normal-to warmer-than-normal temperatures are expected to dominate the large consuming markets of the Midwest and East through the rest of the year.
Cash markets were mixed. Where it is warm, prices are off, and in the few places where it is colder, prices strengthened somewhat. Henry Hub added two cents, to $3.03. New York (Transco-Z6) fell nine cents, to $3.45. SoCalBorder dropped six cents, to $3.35.
