“Widow Maker” no more? Nat Gas heads for largest yearly gain since 2005

Natural gas is set for the biggest annual gain in eight years in New York amid speculation a cold start to 2014 in the U.S. may boost demand for the heating fuel.

Futures for February delivery rose as much as 0.4 percent to $4.446 per million British thermal units in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange and were at $4.443 at 9:26 a.m. Singapore time. It climbed 1.4 percent to $4.427 yesterday. The volume of all contracts traded was about 82 percent less than the 100-day average. Prices are up 33 percent this year, the most since an 83 percent surge in 2005.

Commodity Weather Group LLC predicted a push of below-normal temperatures into the Northeast, Midwest and South through Jan. 8. The high in New York City on Jan. 3 will be 18 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 8 Celsius), 21 below normal, according to AccuWeather Inc.

Bloomberg

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