Gas prices in Europe continue to decrease for the second consecutive day, offsetting a portion of the growth seen earlier this month. Gas benchmark futures dropped by 14% on Monday but still remain 15% higher for the month due to supply risks and the impact of hot weather on demand. Despite gas inventories being ample, the possibility of further disruptions and increased demand poses a threat to supply.
Traders are facing challenges in a volatile gas market in recent weeks and are assessing the severity of the energy crisis and the need to continue importing additional shipments of liquefied natural gas during the summer period. The European Union aims to achieve a target storage level of 90% by November, but analysts express concerns that short-term demand driven by increased needs in Asia or higher cooling requirements may impact reaching this goal.
Prices of Dutch gas benchmarks have declined by 9.3%, reaching €31.75 per megawatt-hour, while the British equivalent has decreased by 8.6%. Despite the price decrease, the gas market in Europe remains unstable, and experts continue to closely monitor further developments in the energy sector.
