Natural Gas Falls Below $3 for First Time in More Than 2 Years

Natural-gas futures in New York dropped below $3 per British thermal units for the first time in more than two years as mild weather and rising production contribute to a growing U.S. stockpile surplus. Gas fell as much as 1.2 percent in electronic trading after an Energy Department report yesterday showed a smaller-than- forecast stockpile decline in the week ended Dec. 23. Supplies fell 81 billion cubic feet to 3.548 trillion, compared with the five-year average drop for the week of 122 billion cubic feet. Inventories were 13.7 percent above the weekly average. Natural gas for February delivery fell 3.6 cents to $2.991 per million British thermal units, the lowest intraday price since the fuel traded at $2.911 on Sept. 14, 2009. About 51 percent of U.S. households use natural gas for heating, according to the Energy Department. Gas has been falling as production at U.S. shale formations gained. The department said in a separate report yesterday that gas output in the lower 48 states rose 1.4 percent to 71.28 billion cubic feet a day in October.