U.S. Natural Gas Posts Biggest Weekly Advance Since August 2020

  • Price jump comes as winter storm tracks over East Coast
  • Rally follows historic gain Thursday in expiring contract
Winter Blast Sends Nat Gas to New Highs in January
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Natural gas futures posted the biggest weekly gain since August 2020 as a winter storm bears down on the U.S. Northeast, following a massive spike in prices as contracts expired Thursday.

Futures for March delivery settled 8.3% higher Friday on the New York Mercantile Exchange after climbing as much as 14% earlier in the session. The increase followed a historic advance of as much as 72% in the expiring February contract on Thursday, a sign of a classic short squeeze as traders exposed to wrong-way bets on lower prices rush to close out those positions.