Playing the Natural Gas Spike

The weather is crappy. It's freezing, it won't stop snowing, and natural gas is spiking... January 23, 2014     Playing the Natural Gas Spike   Winter weather fuels demand Gas rockets to fresh highs Plus: More bad news for retail stocks   Greg Guenthner coming to you from Baltimore, MD... Greg Guenthner The weather is crappy. It's freezing, it won't stop snowing, and natural gas is spiking. Yes, you read that correctly... Natural gas--the cheapest of the cheap fuels--is starting to get a little more expensive. Natural gas prices jumped more than 5% during yesterday's session, pushing prices to levels not seen since late 2011. This morning, it's close to cracking $5. Sure, there are some good reasons for the price surge. The government cut its gas inventory forecasts. And according to Bloomberg, gas delivery to consumers in New York and Boston set records yesterday as the most recent snowstorm buried the Northeast. For some additional confusing analysis, we turn to Commodity Weather Group, which told Bloomberg that we will finish the month with a natural-gas-weighted heating-degree days value of 1,050.8, beating the previous record of 1,038.1 set in January 2004 (this is just a roundabout way of saying it's colder than it's been in a decade and more energy is needed to heat your house). Sure, the cold temps are behind the big surge in natural gas this week. But what's really important right now is the long-term chart: This morning, natty gas is cracking 3-year highs. This bullish move will launch gas into an even sharper uptrend as it continues to break out of its post-financial crisis funk. Gas has been cheap for far too long, dropping to less than $2 in early 2012. Remember, from 2005 to 2008, natural gas routinely traded in the $8 range, with spikes as high as $14. If you're looking to play this monster move in natty gas, you can always check out the United States Natural Gas Fund (NYSE:UNG). Don't chase. Instead, look to buy the dips to play the longer-term trend... Rude researcher Noah Sugarman sees the demand picture changing for natural gas across the globe. In fact, he's found a completely different way to play gas. Click here to get access to his latest trade...         Protect Your Wealth From IRS Harassment The IRS could be targeting you personally because of your politics. The best revenge is to collect piles of income every month… 100% tax-free. The first three minutes of this video show you what you can do right now to LEGALLY get your "revenge." To check it out, click here.           Rude Numbers Targets, Predictions and Wild Guesses   $160 billion has been added to Google's market cap in 2 years, with about $9 billion added just last week. 6% declines in premium cable market share coincided with 4% gains in streaming video over the last 18 months, according to NDP Research. 2009 was the last time investors removed capital from hedge funds as much as they did last month. $1,248 is where you'll find gold futures this morning. After falling to $1,230 late Wednesday, gold stormed back this morning once again to challenge $1,250... $97.08 buys a barrel of crude this morning. Oil keeps cruising higher along with gas, rising more than $3 since Monday afternoon...     Rude Trends When to Buy... When to Sell   Retail is getting smacked around again... Luxury handbag maker Coach Inc. (NYSE:COH) shares plunged more than 7% yesterday morning after the company reported a 9% drop in North American sales and missed profit expectations. This is not an isolated event. In fact, plenty of well-known retailers continue to perform poorly this earnings season. The SPDR S&P Retail Index just keeps trending lower... Back on January 17, I told you to do yourself a favor and avoid these traditional retail train wrecks. Their best days are clearly in the past. The follow through in the retail index breakdown and continued subpar earnings reports are all the proof you need. And the selling could get worse before it gets better... Remember, it's earnings season. You don't want to hold any potentially volatile retail names through their respective earnings announcements. Play it safe and don't take any earnings gambles. Instead, trade one of my favorite picks heading into the end of the week... [Ed. Note: Send your feedback here: rude@agorafinancial.com - and follow me on Twitter: @GregGuenthner]     Ignore At Your Own Peril Today's Must Read Links   Panic In The Oval Office? Could This Keep Obama Up Late? 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