Dow Jones - Natural Gas Rises Ahead of Inventory Data

DJ Natural Gas Rises Ahead of Inventory Data


   By Nicole Friedman


  NEW YORK--Natural gas futures rose Wednesday ahead of weekly inventory data, which is expected to show the largest
storage withdrawal of the winter so far.

  Mild temperatures in late 2015 kept demand for natural gas subdued, weighing on prices and pushing inventories well
above average levels. Cold weather boosts demand for natural gas, which is used as the primary heating fuel in half of
U.S. households.

  Colder temperatures in recent weeks have increased natural gas consumption. Analysts and traders surveyed by The Wall
Street Journal expect the U.S. Energy Information Administration to report on Thursday that stockpiles fell by 175
billion cubic feet in the week ended Jan. 8, close to the average withdrawal for this time of year.

  The EIA data is due Thursday at 10:30 a.m. EST.

  Futures for February delivery settled up 1.2 cents, or 0.5%, to $2.269 a million British thermal units on the New
York Mercantile Exchange.

  However, the market is expected to remain oversupplied through the rest of the winter. If the storage estimate is
correct, inventories as of Jan. 8 totaled 3.6 trillion cubic feet, 24% above levels from a year ago and 19% above the
five-year average for the same week.

  "What's most important is whether strong cold blasts can return to the northern and eastern U.S. during the last week
of January," said NatGasWeather.com in a note. "We must expect neutral weather patterns to be considered not cold
enough in an oversupplied market."


  --Timothy Puko contributed to this article

   FUTURES       SETTLEMENT  NET CHANGE
   Nymex February  $2.269   +1.2c
   Nymex March     $2.290   +2.9c
   Nymex April     $2.337   +1.7c

   CASH HUB       RANGE     PREVIOUS SESSION

  El Paso Perm  $2.40-$2.45  $2.23-$2.25
   El Paso SJ    $2.43-$2.565 $2.27-$2.30
   Henry Hub     $2.46-$2.56  $2.35-$2.41
   Katy          $2.37-$2.44  $2.26-$2.31
   SoCal         $2.56-$2.60  $2.375-$2.43
   Tex East M3   $2.65-$3.54  $3.15-$5.00
   Transco 65    $2.43-$2.52  $2.325-$2.385
   Transco Z6    $4.25-$4.85  $6.00-$8.00
   Waha          $2.40-$2.50  $2.24-$2.25


  Write to Nicole Friedman at nicole.friedman@wsj.com


  (END) Dow Jones Newswires

  January 13, 2016 16:27 ET (21:27 GMT)

  Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.

011316 21:27 -- GMT
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