In light of preliminary readings from CME Group for natural gas futures markets, open interest increased for the second session in a row on Wednesday, this time by around 5.5K contracts. On the flip side, volume reversed two daily builds in a row and shrank by around 4.5K contracts.

Natural Gas: Further losses likely below the 200-day SMA

Prices of natural gas retreated markedly on Wednesday and closed around the 200-day SMA, today near $6.98 per MMBtu. The downtick was in tandem with increasing open interest, which leaves the door open to a deeper pullback in the very near term. A sustained break below the 200-day SMA should be supportive of extra losses for the time being.