The Wall Street Journal reports,natural-gas prices rocketed more than 10% to a four-year high on concerns that sustained frigid weather would lead to robust demand for the heating fuel well into February.
Natural gas for February delivery jumped 52.4 cents to $5.557 a million British thermal units on the New York Mercantile Exchange, the highest closing price since Jan. 25, 2010. Futures posted their largest one-day percentage gain since June 14, 2012, and the biggest one-day dollar gain since Sept. 17, 2008".
The February contract expired at settlement. The more actively traded March contract rose 52.4 cents, or almost 11%, to $5.465/mmBtu.
Prices have soared 31% this month as forecasts continue to call for colder-than-average weather, keeping demand for indoor heating high. About half of U.S. households use natural gas as their primary heating fuel, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
