Weekend Economists Examine (E)sc(h)atology January 24-26, 2014

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39. NATURAL GAS SOARS AS COLD GRIPS HOMES, DRILLERS

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_NATURAL_GAS_PRICE_SPIKE?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2014-01-24-18-18-25

NEW YORK (AP) -- The frigid winter of 2014 is setting the price of natural gas on fire.

The price in the futures market soared to $5.18 per 1,000 cubic feet Friday, up 10 percent to the highest level in three and a half years. The price of natural gas is up 29 percent in two weeks, and is 50 percent higher than last year at this time.

Record amounts of natural gas are being burned for heat and electricity. Meanwhile, it's so cold that drillers are struggling to produce enough to keep up with the high demand. So much natural gas is coming out of storage that the Energy Department says supplies have fallen 20 percent below a year ago - and that was before this latest cold spell.

"We've got record demand, record withdrawals from storage, and short-term production is threatened," says energy analyst Stephen Schork. "It's a dangerous market right now."

Natural gas and electric customers are sure to see somewhat higher rates in the coming months. But they will be insulated from sharp increases because regulators often force natural gas and electric utilities to use financial instruments and fuel-buying strategies that protect residential customers from high volatility.