Global Natural Gas Witness Blurry Market Outlook With a Fluctuation in the Price Trend

Germany- In Europe, demand for Natural Gas in British and Dutch markets increased with the cold weather, but adequate inventories and forecasts of a rebound in renewable energy power generation limited gains. As a result of growing momentum and cold weather forecasts for March 2023, Natural Gas futures continued to rally recently. However, the recent increase in price trend is not expected to last, and as per the Gas Infrastructure data, Natural Gas inventories are around 62% full overall to surpass the winters.

Gas storage drawdowns continued across the European region, with France storage down 10% week-on-week and the overall inventories down 2%. European Natural Gas traders used the Dutch TTF hub to benchmark their front-month contracts, which were 1.35 Euros higher than the last month's contract at 48.55 Euros per Megawatt-hour (MWh).

In the US, Natural Gas futures gained more price momentum on the forecast for cold weather and high heating demand over the next two weeks than expected. On March 1, 2023, the price of Natural Gas in the US surged to USD 2.7 per MMBtu. As the week progressed, cold air over the northern Plains spread south and eastward, dropping the regional climate. Temperatures are likely to dip below zero overnight in some areas, with chilly air likely penetrating deep into Texas and South America, further strengthening Natural Gas futures. In the short term, the prices are gaining firmer stances with stock utilization and a dip in US supplies.

According to ChemAnalyst, the price of Natural Gas in the global market will remain bearish for the short term amid adequate product inventories among the storage units and limited demand. In the European market, Natural Gas prices will not rise to extreme levels if there is an adequate trading volume among storage units. In the US, the cold waves with the expectation of chilly weather can give some momentum to the cost. However, sufficient inventories will cap the prices from increasing to the highs in the short period. The Natural Gas production rate will decline further, and market participants will remain under pressure to reduce their existing inventories.