Natural Gas Prices

Henry Hub averaged USD 2.65 per one million British thermal units (MMBtu) in August, up 0.2% from July’s price but 69.8% lower year on year. On 31 August, the fuel traded at USD 2.76 per MMBtu, 4.9% higher month on month.

After rising for three months in a row, the spot price was largely stagnant in August, suggesting that the oversupplied U.S. natural gas market is still gradually rebalancing. On the one hand, U.S. natural gas consumption fell 2.3% from 3 August–23 August compared to the prior three weeks, while gas flows to the seven-largest U.S. LNG export terminals dipped 4.0% in August compared to July. U.S. natural gas consumption cooled thanks to the easing of a nationwide heatwave, while LNG exports were weighed on by plant maintenance outages. On the other hand, continental U.S. gas production dipped in August compared to July, with the U.S. gas rig count falling to a nearly 18-month low by the end of the month on low prices and rising production costs.