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Natural Gas Rises From Three-Year Lows... BUT_SEE_BOLD
Natural gas prices have slumped in the past week on worries over moderate weather
By NICOLE FRIEDMAN
Oct. 27, 2015 10:32 a.m. ET
http://www.wsj.com/articles/natural-gas-rises-from-three-year-lows-1445956320
NEW YORK--Natural gas futures rose slightly Tuesday after falling below $2 a million British thermal units for the first time in three years on concerns about weak demand.

Futures for November delivery recently traded up 2.2 cents, or 1.1%, at $2.084/mmBtu on the New York Mercantile Exchange, after falling to as low as $1.948/mmBtu in overnight trading. The November contract expires at settlement Wednesday. The more-actively traded December contract recently rose 3.6 cents, or 1.5%, to $2.389/mmBtu.

Natural gas prices have slumped in the past week on worries that moderate weather will limit indoor-heating demand and keep the market oversupplied. Natural gas is used as the primary heating fuel in about half of U.S. households.

Forecasts for the next six to 10 days call for warmer-than-normal weather in the eastern U.S., according to Commodity Weather Group LLC.

“No one wants to own the November gas contract,” said Houston investment bank Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. in a note to clients, noting that already-ample inventories are likely to hit a record high.

Inventories as of Oct. 6 stood 4.5% above the five-year average for the week, according to the Energy Information Administration. The EIA will release its inventory data for the week ended Oct. 23 on Thursday.

“The primary culprit for the [price] weakness is burgeoning storage driven by a warmer forecast,” said Simmons & Co. International, an investment bank, in a note.

Physical gas for next-day delivery at the Henry Hub in Louisiana last traded at $2.09/mmBtu, compared with Monday’s range of $2.13-$2.18. Cash prices at the Transco Z6 hub in New York last traded at $1.98/mmBtu, compared with Monday’s range of $2.15-$2.20.

Write to Nicole Friedman at [e-mail]