Record Cold, Winter Storm Send Nat Gas Futures Soaring (UNG)
Nat gas futures are ripping higher following weekly storage data as well as a giant winter storm hitting the Eastern U.S.
Henry Hub March 2014 contracts are up $0.375 to $5.197 per mmBtu on the Comex, a 7.8 percent rise for the commodity. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) said today the stockpiles fell 237 billion cubic feet (bcf) to 1.686 trillion cubic feet (tcf) for the week ending February 7th. Consensus estimates were looking for a drop of just 237 bcf last week.
Today's drop exceeded the trailing five-year average by 46 percent, according to available data.
There's really no surprise that the margin has been as wide as it has. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) recently reported that last January was the coldest on record since January 2001.
In addition, Winter Storm Pax is expected to drop some 12 inches of snow across New York, along with winds reaching 35 miles per hour (MPH). Washington DC could get up to 10 inches and parts of New Jersey up to 14 inches as the storm works its way through.
About 49 percent of U.S. households use gas for heating.
Shares of United States Natural Gas (NYSE: UNG) are up 6.2 percent.
Henry Hub March 2014 contracts are up $0.375 to $5.197 per mmBtu on the Comex, a 7.8 percent rise for the commodity. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) said today the stockpiles fell 237 billion cubic feet (bcf) to 1.686 trillion cubic feet (tcf) for the week ending February 7th. Consensus estimates were looking for a drop of just 237 bcf last week.
Today's drop exceeded the trailing five-year average by 46 percent, according to available data.
There's really no surprise that the margin has been as wide as it has. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) recently reported that last January was the coldest on record since January 2001.
In addition, Winter Storm Pax is expected to drop some 12 inches of snow across New York, along with winds reaching 35 miles per hour (MPH). Washington DC could get up to 10 inches and parts of New Jersey up to 14 inches as the storm works its way through.
About 49 percent of U.S. households use gas for heating.
Shares of United States Natural Gas (NYSE: UNG) are up 6.2 percent.
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