Natural Gas prices fall below $2.70 despite USD Index attempts to recover, and demand concerns grow

After a perpendicular recovery to close to $2.70 in the Asian session, Natural Gas futures have turned sideways. Weakness in the US Dollar Index (DXY), in general, has aided the upward bias in natural gas prices. Natural Gas futures appear vulnerable near $2.70 as the USD Index has demonstrated a recovery move to near 103.90 as investors become anxious ahead of the release of the United States Consumer Price Index (CPI) data.

The Federal Reserve's decision to raise interest rates is anticipated to have a negative impact on industrial demand for natural gas (Fed). The market anticipates that Fed chair Jerome Powell's scheduled rate hikes will lead to a recession in the near future.

Meanwhile, Winter is nearing its conclusion and summer has not yet arrived. Consequently, demand for residential purposes to heat domestic spaces will remain low. Additionally, because residences will require less electricity to operate air conditioners, power companies are less reliant on natural gas.

The recent decline in the USD Index is what has given Natural Gas prices new life. The US Energy Information Administration's (EIA) inventory data, which is released every Thursday, will dominate this week's trading in Natural Gas futures.

Going forward, investors eagerly anticipate the publication of US inflation data in order to form a new consensus. According to the projections, the headline CPI could fall to 6.0% from the previous release of 6.4%. And, core inflation, which excludes crude and food prices, is anticipated to decrease slightly to 5.5% from the previous release of 5.6%.