Natural gas futures fell to the lowest in more than six years in New York on speculation demand will weaken for the factory and power-plant fuel. Gas prices have declined 38 percent this year as companies including Caterpillar Inc., the world’s largest maker of heavy equipment, cut jobs and shut plants. Caterpillar today reported its first quarterly net loss in 16 years and reduced its full- year profit and sales forecast because of the recession. Industrial users account for 29 percent of U.S. gas consumption. Natural gas for May delivery fell 8.7 cents, or 2.5 percent, to $3.453 per million British thermal units at 9:25 a.m. on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Gas earlier dropped to $3.448, the lowest price since Sept. 26, 2002. The economy probably shrank 5 percent in the first three months of this year, the median estimate of 19 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News. Caterpillar, which predicted the U.S. recession in October 2007, said today it expects the world economy to shrink 1.3 percent this year. Supplies of gas rose 21 billion cubic feet in the week ended April 10 to 1.695 trillion cubic feet, the Energy Department said last week. Gas inventories were 23 percent higher than the five-year average.

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