Prices of natural gas in Europe fell for the fifth day in a row thanks to mild and windy weather that is helping to keep reserves from running out quickly, Bloomberg reports.
Underlying futures were slightly lower on Monday after falling 2.8% last week. Over the weekend, the storm "Darragh" passed through the UK, which boosted wind power production and reduced the use of gas in production.
Although a slight cooling and reduction in wind speed is expected over the coming days, the forecast is for mild and breezy conditions to return next week. This could curb gas consumption just as new supplies arrive in the region. Liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports into Europe are now at their highest level since January.
Some LNG cargoes were delayed in Wales because of the stormy weekend, but one tanker is already offloading and four more are due to arrive this week, according to ship tracking data compiled by Bloomberg and port information.
According to leading private Chinese importer ENN Group, Asian demand remains weak as top consumer China may resell more LNG due to weak domestic industrial demand and higher spot prices, making re-exports more profitable.< br />
Dutch monthly natural gas futures, which benchmark the European market, were down 0.7% at 46.16 euros per megawatt hour as of 8:49 a.m. in Amsterdam. The British equivalent decreased by 1.1%, adds the agency.
For the fifth day in a row! Gas prices in Europe are back down
Although a slight cooling and wind speed reduction is expected in the coming days, mild and breezy conditions are forecast again next week
Dec 9, 2024 20:50 109
