Dow Jones Natural Gas - Morning Commentary

DJ Natural Gas Prices Retreating on Warmer Forecasts, Growing Stockpiles

   By Timothy Puko


  Natural gas is retreating as warmer forecasts suggest falling demand and the potential to add to stockpiles for the
first time this year.

  Natural gas for April delivery is down 3.9 cents, or 1.4%, at $2.747 a million British thermal units on the New York
Mercantile Exchange. The market has given back most of Tuesday's gains.

  Weather forecasts have oscillated wildly in the past month and some are now showing above-normal temperatures for
most of the country next week, a day after they showed lingering winter cold. About half of U.S. homes use natural gas
for heat, and milder spring weather would lead to a dramatic dropoff in demand.

  Some analysts and traders are also expecting that stockpiles grew last week for the first time this year. The U.S.
Energy Information Administration scheduled its official update on storage levels for Thursday at 10:30 a.m. An
addition this early in the year could be a sign that stockpiles will grow at a rapid pace this summer and encourage
more selling, said Bob Yawger, director of the futures division at Mizuho Securities USA Inc.

  "We could test $2.70 in no time, but I don't think it's going to fall apart here," he added.

  Physical gas for next-day delivery at the Henry Hub in Louisiana last traded at $2.75/mmBtu, compared with Tuesday's
range of $2.75-$2.7975. Cash prices at the Transco Z6 hub in New York last traded at $2.54/mmBtu, compared with
Tuesday's range of $2.645 to $2.74.


  Write to Timothy Puko at tim.puko@wsj.com


Subscribe to WSJ: http://online.wsj.com?mod=djnwireshttp://online.wsj.com?mod=djnwires">http://online.wsj.com?mod=djnwires
>

  (END) Dow Jones Newswires

  March 25, 2015 10:01 ET (14:01 GMT)

  Copyright (c) 2015 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.

032515 14:01 -- GMT
------