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Natural Gas LDay (F) July 2016 (HHN16)

4.283s+0.038 (+0.90%) 5:54P EDT (NYMEX)
Commodity Price Quote as of Tuesday, Jun 18th, 2013 View Help

Contract Specifications

Symbol HH
Name Natural Gas Last Day [Financial] (HH)
Exchange NYMEX
Trading Months January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December (F, G, H, J, K, M, N, Q, U, V, X, Z)
Trading Unit 10,000 MMBtu (million British thermal units)
Tick Size 0.1 cent per MMBtu ($10.00 per contract)
Daily Limit $1.00 per MMBtu ($10,000 per contract)
Trading Hours 5:00p.m. - 4:15p.m. (Sun-Fri) CST
Last Trading Day Trading terminates three business days prior to the first calendar day of the delivery month
Value of one futures unit $10,000
Value of one options unit $10,000

CRB Yearbook Description

Natural gas is a fossil fuel that is colorless, shapeless, and odorless in its pure form. It is a mixture of hydrocarbon gases formed primarily of methane, but it can also include ethane, propane, butane, and pentane. Natural gas is combustible, clean burning, and gives off a great deal of energy. Around 500 BC, the Chinese discovered that the energy in natural gas could be harnessed. They passed it through crude bamboo-shoot pipes and then burned it to boil sea water to create potable fresh water. Around 1785, Britain became the first country to commercially use natural gas produced from coal for streetlights and indoor lights. In 1821, William Hart dug the first well specifically intended to obtain natural gas and he is generally regarded as the "father of natural gas" in America. There is a vast amount of natural gas estimated to still be in the ground in the U.S. Natural gas as a source of energy is significantly less expensive than electricity per Btu.

Natural gas futures and options are traded on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX). The NYMEX natural gas futures contract calls for the delivery of natural gas representing 10,000 million British thermal units (mmBtu) at the Henry Hub in Louisiana, which is the nexus of 16 intra-state and inter-state pipelines. The contract is priced in terms of dollars per mmBtu. NYMEX also has basic swap futures contracts available for 30 different natural gas pricing locations versus the benchmark Henry Hub location. Natural gas futures are also listed in London on the International Petroleum Exchange (IPE).

Prices - NYMEX natural gas futures on the nearest-futures chart during 2011 traded sideways in the first half of the year and then steadily sold off during the remainder of the year to close 2011 down 32% at $2.989 per mmBtu.

Supply - U.S. recovery of natural gas in 2010 rose +3.2% to a record high of 26.851 billion cubic feet. The top U.S. producing states for natural gas were Texas with 30.0% of U.S. production in 2010, Wyoming with 10.3%, Louisiana with 9.9%, Oklahoma with 8.2%, and Colorado with 7.1%. In 2010 the world's largest natural gas producers were the U.S. with 2,054,478 terajoules and Russia with 1,839,759 terajoules of production.

Demand - U.S.- delivered consumption of natural gas in 2010 rose +5.7% yr/yr to 24.134 billion cubic feet, of which about 30.6% was delivered to electrical utility plants, 27.4% to industrial establishments, 20.5% to residences, and 13.3% to commercial establishments.

Trade - U.S. imports of natural gas (consumed) in 2010 fell -0.3% yr/yr to 3.740 billion cubic feet, down from the 2007 record high of 4,607 billion cubic feet. U.S. exports of natural gas in 2010 rose +4.7% yr/yr to 1,122 billion cubic feet, which is a new record high.

Articles from the Commodity Research Bureau (CRB) Commodity Yearbook. The single most comprehensive source of commodity and futures market information available, the Yearbook is the book of record of the Commodity Research Bureau, which is, in turn, the organization of record for the commodity industry itself. Its sources - reports from governments, private industries, and trade and industrial associations - are authoritative, and its historical scope is second to none. Additional information can be found at www.crbyearbook.com.
More commodity data from Commodity Research Bureau.