"US Natural Gas Prices Expected to Rise About 40% in Second Half"

U.S. natural gas prices are expected to rise by nearly 40% in the second half of the year.

Bloomberg News reported on the 10th (local time), citing a report from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), that natural gas prices will increase from $2.1 per MMBtu in the first half of the year to $2.9 per MMBtu in the second half. The news agency stated, "Natural gas bulls, who have been anticipating a price rebound after several months of a sluggish winter, have finally received good news," adding, "Natural gas prices are expected to surge by more than one-third in the second half of the year."

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U.S. natural gas prices are currently down nearly 10% compared to the previous year. Last week, prices hit $2.3 per MMBtu, the lowest level in the past eight weeks. This contrasts sharply with early 2022, shortly after Russia's invasion of Ukraine, when prices surpassed $9 per MMBtu, marking the highest level in 14 years.

The news agency noted that U.S. natural gas prices have been struggling to exceed $3 per MMBtu since January, citing factors such as a warm winter caused by a strong El Ni?o, resulting in a sharp decline in demand and oversupply. Despite increased cooling demand due to recent heatwaves, current natural gas storage levels exceed the five-year average by 18%.

In response, major producers including EQT have temporarily reduced production. Leading analysts have evaluated these measures as increasingly having a positive impact on supply and demand.

However, the media added that for the EIA's forecast of price increases in the second half to materialize, "cooperation from nature is necessary." Otherwise, natural gas bulls may need to exercise even greater patience. Dennis Kisler, Vice President of BOS Financial Security, said, "The forecast will become reality only if cold weather begins in the East in November," adding, "For this to happen, storage inventories must decrease quickly this fall."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.