Natural Gas Futures Fall as Attention Turns to Likely Domestic Demand Losses

U.S. natural gas prices retreated Monday after rallying the previous week in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Traders looked past soaring European gas and global oil prices to start and focused on the likelihood of waning domestic demand.

At A Glance:

• Production falls to 97 Bcf/d
• Forecasts for mixed demand
• NGI models draw of 41 Bcf

The April Nymex gas futures contract settled at $4.833/MMBtu, down 18.3 cents day/day. May shed 17.8 cents to $4.858. The prompt month had gained 12% last week.

NGI’s Spot Gas National Avg., meanwhile, gained 19.5 cents to $4.690 amid an early-week blast of cold.

European natural prices surged to record levels to start the trading week and global crude prices followed suit. Benchmark gas futures in Europe touched $115 in early...