August Natural Gas Retreats Early as Contract Expiry Seen Influencing Near-Term Trade

As traders weighed a mix of fundamental factors ahead of the looming front month contract expiration, natural gas futures retreated early Wednesday. 

The August Nymex contract was off 2.9 cents to $2.701/MMBtu at around 8:30 a.m. ET. September was down 2.9 cents to $2.718.

Front month declines early Wednesday occurred as “near-term weather forecasts appear to relent,” EBW Analytics Group analyst Eli Rubin told clients. 

An upward revision to daily production estimates and potential for a pipeline disruption to impact deliveries to Cove Point LNG may have also influenced selling pressure, according to the analyst.

“Trader positioning surrounding the August contract options expiry later today and final settlement tomorrow will dictate near-term trading,” Rubin said....