Commodities
Nat-Gas Prices Soar on Hot Weather and Smaller Storage Build
Natural gas prices surged to a one-month high on Wednesday, driven by forecasts of hot US weather and expectations of a smaller-than-normal increase in weekly storage.
The Commodity Weather Group reported that temperatures will be above average across the eastern two-thirds of the country from August 31 through September 4, boosting demand for natural gas to power air conditioning.
According to market consensus, Thursday's weekly EIA nat-gas inventories are expected to increase by +15 bcf, below the five-year average of +33 bcf.
The Edison Electric Institute reported a 6.1% year-over-year rise in US electricity output for the week ended August 22, while natural gas production rose 3.2% year over year.