Natural gas strengthened after the extended holiday weekend as cold, rainy winter blasts continued to move across the country. With heightened geopolitical tensions driving a broader spike across commodities, the March Nymex gas futures contract settled Tuesday at $4.498/MMBtu, up 6.7 cents from Friday’s close. April futures climbed 8.4 cents to $4.461.

NGI Storage Estimate

At A Glance:

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

Spot gas prices also firmed across much of the Lower 48, but an extensive sell-off in the Northeast drove NGI’s Spot Gas National Avg. down 29.5 cents to $4.535.

On the futures front, prices were strong out of the gate Tuesday as the escalating tensions between Russia and Ukraine dominated market behavior and the news. Of...