On forecasts for higher heating demand next week than previously predicted, US natural gas futures on Monday rose over 4 percent for the second day in a row.
For May delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange, front-month gas futures on Monday rose 4.6 percent to $1.696 per million British thermal units but gas was still just about 15 cents over the $1.552 settle on April 2.
Gas was already traded near its lowest in years even before the coronavirus started to cut global energy demand and economic growth.
On expectations demand will rise in coming months once the spread of coronavirus slows, gas futures are trading much higher for the balance of 2020 and calendar 2021. With cooler weather coming, gas demand in the US is expected to rise from an average of 94.0 bcfd this week to 100.3 bcfd next week. Refinitiv on Friday forecasted 94.6 bcfd for this week and 97.9 bcfd for next week.
In the spot market, next-day power prices slashed to a fresh record low for the second day in a row at the SP-15 hub in Southern California due to mild weather this week. For the second day in a row, gas plunged at the US Henry Hub benchmark in Louisiana to its lowest since March 2016.
