Natural gas prices set record, more cold weather on its way

Natural gas prices set a new intraday record of $8.80 per 1,000 cubic feet on Wednesday, before settling at $8.49, as the latest U.S. weather forecasts showed even colder temperatures arriving soon. Natural gas prices set a new intraday record of $8.80 per 1,000 cubic feet on Wednesday. WEEKLY DATA RELEASED Wednesday by the American Gas Association showed a draw of 73 billion cubic feet from U.S. inventories of natural gas; the decline was not as severe as some traders had feared, but nonetheless it comes at a time when supplies are considerably lower than year-ago levels. Wednesday’s spike in natural gas was a reversal from Tuesday, when predictions of milder temperatures helped moderate prices.Crude and products also finished higher on the New York Mercantile Exchange on Wednesday. Crude oil for January delivery rose 32 cents to $29.85 per barrel, January heating oil jumped 3.5 cents to $1.01 a gallon and nearby unleaded gasoline gained nearly 2 cents to 78.21 cents a gallon. In London, Brent crude from the North Sea gained 22 cents to $28.01 pere barrel.