Natural gas futures headed for a sixth consecutive weekly decline in New York on forecasts for mild weather that would curtail demand for the power-plant fuel.
Gas prices last fell for six straight weeks in 2010. Temperatures are expected to be lower than normal in parts of the Midwest, Great Lakes region and South through Aug. 8, according to Commodity Weather Group LLC. The high in Chicago on July 29 may be 76 degrees Fahrenheit (24 Celsius), 8 below average, data from AccuWeather Inc. show.
“The weather is looking exceedingly mild,” said John Kilduff, a partner at Again Capital LLC, a New York-based hedge fund that focuses on energy. “We’re seeing below-normal temperatures for at least the next two weeks. The gas market is looking very bearish for the near term.”
Natural gas for August delivery fell 4.2 cents, or 1.1 percent, to $3.805 per million British thermal units at 9:09 a.m. on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Volume for all futures traded was 10 percent below the 100-day average. Gas slid to $3.744 in intraday trading yesterday, the lowest since Nov. 26. Futures are down 10 percent this year.
