As forecasts continued to point to widespread cooling demand potential by mid-June, natural gas futures were headed for a third consecutive positive session through midday trading Friday.
Here’s the latest:
- July Nymex futures at $2.948/MMBtu as of 1:54 p.m. ET, up 12.7 cents
- Forecasts honing in on widespread heat later in 15-day projection period
Midday data from the Global Forecast System added cooling degree days (CDD), closing the gap on the hotter European model, according to NatGasWeather.
Both models were “quite hot for the eight- to 15-day forecast period and with decently stronger than normal demand on above normal national CDDs,” NatGasWeather said.
Maxar’s Weather Desk similarly called for expanding coverage of above-normal temperatures in its updated six- to 10-day projections Friday.
“Above and much above normal temperatures favor the Interior West early in the period and are quick to expand eastward into the Midwest and East,” Maxar said. “The second half of the period features highs in the upper 80s to near 90 degrees in Chicago and upper 80s in New York.”
Meanwhile, the latest 11- to 15-day outlook maintained a similarly hot pattern versus previous expectations, according to the forecaster.
“Below normal temperatures are confined to the Northwest early in the period, while aboves are widespread in coverage elsewhere,” Maxar said. “Overall, the forecast is among the warmest for the period back to 1950” in terms of population-weighted CDDs.
- Cash prices mostly lower on deals for weekend and Monday delivery, according to NGI’s MidDay Price Alert
- Northeast Regional Avg. headed for third straight daily decline, off 17.5 cents to $1.265
Maxar was predicting generally mild temperatures across population centers in the Midwest and East over the weekend and into early next week. Highs in Chicago were expected to hover in the upper 60s Monday. New York City was expected to see highs in the mid-70s Monday and Tuesday, according to the forecaster.
