Dow Jones - Natural Gas Holds Steady As Bear Market Rules

DJ Natural Gas Holds Steady as Bear Market Rules



  By Timothy Puko


  Natural gas was lingering near three-year lows as traders hesitate to push further down but also have little reason
to buy, analysts and brokers said.

  Prices for the front-month November contract gained 0.2 cent, or 0.1%, to $2.452 a million British thermal units on
the New York Mercantile Exchange. Prices are within 5 cents of the three-year lows they set last week.

  Prices had been higher in early-morning trading, but analysts chalked it up to more profit-taking from bearish
traders who benefited from last week's decline.

  Several banks have cut their price forecast in recent days. While few go far below current prices, they also said
there is little reason to expect any rally back to the $3/mmBtu prices that were common last year.

  Several pipelines are now congested with too much gas and spot prices are weak, said Donald Morton, senior vice
president at Herbert J. Sims & Co.

  "All bear markets eventually have a bottom, but what you have to realize is that fundamental bear markets don't last
a week or two weeks," he said. "This bear market in natural gas could be two to three years in duration before the
demand side (sees) a lot of long-term growth."

  Physical gas for next-day delivery at the Henry Hub in Louisiana last traded at $2.35/mmBtu, compared with Monday's
range of $2.275-$2.37. Cash prices at the Transco Z6 hub in New York last traded at $2.39/mmBtu, compared with Monday's
range of $2.25 to $2.33.


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


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  (END) Dow Jones Newswires

  October 06, 2015 10:08 ET (14:08 GMT)

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

100615 14:08 -- GMT
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