Daily Market Update September 19, 2022
Early Morning Update
The Oct ‘22 natural gas contract is trading down $0.13 at $7.63. The Oct ‘22 crude oil contract is down $2.81 at $82.30.
Summary
Last week, near-term MYMEX natural gas futures saw heavy volatility. Multiple days saw more than a $0.50 swing in day-to-day pricing, with the October prompt month reaching as high at $9.10, but finishing the week at $7.76/MMBtu. The main driving forces for the high volatility were the potential for a rail strike, which, as of now, seems to be averted, and higher-than-normal temperatures from the Midwest through the East Coast. The higher-than-normal temperatures have the September 2022 power burn demand around 4-5 Bcf/d more than last year’s power burn demand rate. Over the weekend, total demand rose, back up to almost 89 Bcf/d today. The rise in demand was due to another increase in power burn demand, which is currently at 37 Bcf/d. All other sectors of demand remained at steady levels and match last year’s demand averages. Production also stalled over the weekend and saw no change from late last week. Production is currently at 96.2 Bcf/d, which is down 0.5 Bcf/d from its recent highs of 96.7 Bcf/d. Both imports and exports saw little to no change in their rates over the weekend. This upcoming week is expected to see higher-than-normal temperatures continue, especially in the Midwest.