Natural-gas futures rally by more than 5%; oil prices finish higher
Natural-gas futures climbed by more than 5% on Monday, supported by hotter-than-usual weather throughout much of the U.S., which has boosted demand for the commodity as a power source, analysts said. The rise in U.S. prices also follows a rally in European prices for the commodity, with Dutch TTF gas futures up nearly 12% Monday. Russian state-owned energy producer Gazprom said natural-gas exports through the Nord Stream pipeline to Germany would drop to 20% of the pipe's capacity, down from the current 40% of capacity, The Wall Street Journal reported Monday. August natural rose 43 cents, or 5.2%, to settle at $8.727 per million British thermal units on the New York Mercantile Exchange. August West Texas Intermediate crude , meanwhile, added $2, or 2.1%, to settle at $96.70 a barrel. Oil prices are going to remain volatile this week with the Federal Reserve meeting on Tuesday and Wednesday and the U.S. jobs report Friday, said Naeem Aslam, chief market analyst at AvaTrade.
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