re: gas prices
Feb. 6 (Bloomberg) -- Natural gas futures rose for a third day in New York, the longest streak in three months, on speculation government efforts to boost the economy will increase demand for energy.
Slumping factory demand has helped sent gas prices down 41 percent from a year ago. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Nevada Democrat, said a vote on a stimulus package may come late today. Industrial consumption of gas, which accounts for about 29 percent of demand, has declined as the recession deepened.
“The stimulus package is a big deal,” said Chris Jarvis, president of Caprock Risk Management LLC in Hampton Falls, New Hampshire. “Having a package passed would be a huge psychological boost.”
Natural gas for March delivery rose 9.4 cents, or 2 percent, to $4.736 per million British thermal units at 2:07 p.m. on the New York Mercantile Exchange. If prices close there it would be the first three-day rally since early November. Prices have dropped 16 percent this year and are down 65 percent from the 2008 high of $13.694 on July 2.
Prices also rose as traders who use charts and graphs to make buying decisions bet recent price declines were at an end.
“We’ve been trading between the nine and 18-day moving averages, which are key ones for a lot of traders,” said George Ellis, a director in the energy derivatives group at BMO Capital Markets in New York. “The market is trying to trend up a bit.”
The nine-day moving average for natural gas is $4.5462 per million Btu and the 18-day is $4.6569, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Baker Hughes Inc. said the number of natural gas rigs operating last week fell by 46, or 4 percent, to 1,104, the lowest since the week ended March 11, 2005. The count was down 31 percent from a peak of 1,606 reached on Aug. 29.
MAE Price at posting:
26.5¢ Sentiment: ST Buy Disclosure: Held
