Natural gas prices rallied to their highest level in more than 11 months as the Energy Information Administration (“EIA”) reported a net decline of 64 Bcf with working gas in storage of 3,773 Bcf as of Friday, December 4, 2009.
The current “monster” winter storm currently hammering North America will certainly see another drop in natural gas inventories for next Thursday’s report. It is important to keep in mind that stocks are still well above average for similar time frames. Stocks were 472 Bcf higher than last year at this time and 513 Bcf above the 5-year average of 3,260 Bcf.
In the coming days we’ll look at how there may be a spike in natural gas prices before they settle back down into a narrower and lower range. Average price for 2010 is still targeted by many in the $5.50 to $6.50 range.
MarketWatch: Natural gas surges after inventories; crude falls below $70
