Cooling

U.S. natural gas forward prices continued on the wild ride they’ve been on the last few weeks, posting steep losses — one week after putting up equally sharp gains — as weather models that had called for scorching temperatures throughout most of July had begun to cool.

August natural gas futures were set to open Tuesday near even at around $2.863/MMBtu following Monday’s declines, with record-level production and expectations for recent summer heat to ease, keeping the bears in the driver’s seat for now.

November natural gas is expected to open a penny higher Monday morning at $2.87 as weather data shows both lowered heating and increased cooling load near term. Overnight oil markets eased.

October natural gas is expected to open 2 cents lower Thursday morning at $3.07 ahead of government figures anticipated to show well above normal inventory additions. Overnight oil markets fell.

October natural gas is set to open unchanged Tuesday morning at $3.14 as traders digest Monday’s gains and look for a spot to sell. Overnight oil markets advanced.

August natural gas is expected to open 3 cents higher Tuesday morning at $2.93 as traders see the near 15-cent loss of weather premium over the last two sessions as adequate for the moment. Overnight oil markets rose.

July natural gas is set to open a penny higher Friday morning at $3.04 as traders digest Thursday’s positive market response to an otherwise bearish storage report and weather forecasts for next week continue hot. Overnight oil markets were narrowly mixed.

June natural gas is expected to open 3 cents higher Thursday morning at $3.22 as traders anticipate a government storage report to show declining inventory surpluses relative to historical averages. Overnight oil markets fell.

November natural gas is set to open 3 cents lower at $2.96 Monday morning as forecasts call for offsetting cooling and heating loads. Overnight oil markets slumped.