Gas prices ease despite low storage levels – Commerzbank

European Gas prices have slipped back below EUR 28/MWh as markets look past the current cold spell toward milder weather, despite storage levels remaining well below average. In the US, Henry Hub prices have fallen sharply from recent highs as temperature forecasts ease concerns over further heavy withdrawals, Commerzbank's commodity analyst Barbara Lambrecht notes.

European Gas market stays calm after Cold spell

"The Gas market remains calm. Although European Gas storage filling levels are around 10 percentage points lower than usual for this time of year, standing at just over 60%, and temperatures in Europe are currently significantly lower than usual, the European benchmark price, TTF, has fallen below EUR 28 per MWh once again. Market participants are probably looking further ahead to milder temperatures forecast after the current cold spell."

"Similar developments can be observed across the Atlantic, where milder temperatures are also forecast. Henry Hub prices, which climbed to a three-year high of $5.5 per mmBtu just a month ago due to significantly higher than usual withdrawals from the then well-filled reserves in the wake of an initial cold spell, are now trading at around $2 less."