BLBG:U.S. Natural Gas Extends Decline as Heat Moderates on East Coast
Natural gas futures extended declines in New York on speculation that moderating heat in the U.S. will reduce demand for air conditioning.
Gas for August delivery declined as much as 0.6 percent to $3.606 per million British thermal units in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange and was at $3.623 at 12:45 a.m. Singapore time. The contract fell 1.3 percent yesterday.
Forecasts showed an East Coast heat wave this week will give way to milder weather from July 22 through July 26, according to MDA Weather Services in Gaithersburg, Maryland. July 2012 was the hottest month in the lower 48 states in records going back 117 years, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration data show.
The high temperature in New York City on July 25 will be 81 degrees Fahrenheit (27 Celsius), 3 below normal, after reaching highs in the mid-90s this week, according to AccuWeather Inc. in State College, Pennsylvania. Chicago’s high may be 6 lower than the usual reading at 78 degrees.
Power generation accounts for 32 percent of U.S. gas demand, according to the Energy Information Administration, the Energy Department’s statistical arm.
To contact the reporter on this story: Chou Hui Hong in Singapore at chong43@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Alexander Kwiatkowski at akwiatkowsk2@bloomberg.net
