US natural gas prices fell this week to a two-week low amid forecasts for milder weather in the coming period.

Gas traded at 3.03 dollars per million British thermal units, the lowest since late September, though still far above levels seen in October 2024. Analysts believe that the sharp increase in liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports has played a key role in sustaining these higher prices — a paradox that now places President Donald Trump in a political and economic bind.

Upon taking office, Trump pledged to make domestic energy cheaper while turning the United States into a dominant global energy power. In oil, that meant keeping gasoline prices low while expanding exports. The same ambition applies to natural gas — but achieving both affordability and dominance simultaneously is far more difficult, as the two goals are inherently at odds.

Since the start of the year, US LNG exports have been climbing to record highs.

According to the latest data for September, exports reached 9.4 million tons, up from 9.3 million in August — a new all-time record. That record is expected to be broken again this month as Europe races to stockpile gas ahead of winter.

But the key question now is whether US gas producers can keep up with this surging demand — and more importantly, whether they even want to.

US natural gas producers, like oil drillers, are highly sensitive to price swings. When prices remain low for too long, producers typically scale back output.

That is not the case today. Prices have risen by about one dollar per million British thermal units over the past year, and demand prospects remain strong — driven by the rapid growth of domestic data centers and digital infrastructure that consume massive amounts of energy, as well as Europe’s commitment to increase purchases of US energy.

This means the Trump administration has succeeded in achieving “energy dominance,” but at the cost of its promise to keep domestic prices low.

America’s rise as a “gas superpower” stems from the shale gas revolution. However, shale fields are now maturing, as noted in a *Wall Street Journal* report analyzing Trump’s energy policy.

Over time, extraction costs are expected to rise — pushing prices higher for both US consumers and global buyers.

Eugene Kim, an analyst at Wood Mackenzie, told the paper, “If you want to export all this LNG while meeting growth in the data sector and higher electricity demand, you’ll need higher prices. That’s exactly the opposite of what Trump wants — cheaper energy.”

Norway’s experience two years ago serves as a warning: expanding gas and electricity exports to Europe drove domestic prices sharply higher, sparking public backlash and forcing the government to impose export limits to protect local consumers.

At the same time, Tom Summers, head of LNG trading at Shell, said earlier this year, “Updated projections show that the world will need more gas for power generation, heating, cooling, industry, and transport to meet development and decarbonization goals.” He expects LNG demand to rise by 60% by 2040.

According to the US Energy Information Administration, LNG exports reached 14 billion cubic feet per day in July and could climb to 27 billion cubic feet per day, according to analysts cited by *The Wall Street Journal.*

This scenario looks ideal for US gas producers under an administration eager to expand export capacity — but far less so for domestic consumers.

Rising US gas prices appear inevitable as shale gas productivity declines — a trend also seen in oil fields.

Much of America’s gas output comes as associated gas from oil wells, which are themselves nearing depletion in their richest zones — known as “sweet spots,” or areas with high output and low cost.

This means production costs will rise in the future, translating into higher end prices for consumers.

Industry executives quoted by *The Wall Street Journal* said US producers need prices of at least 5 dollars per million British thermal units to justify investment in lower-yield, higher-cost regions — roughly double current levels.

If that does not happen, supply will eventually contract as drilling slows, which in turn will push prices higher — an outcome producers dislike because it dampens demand.

The CEO of Aeton Energy Management said earlier this year, “We want long-term price stability for the commodity; we don’t want to destroy demand through volatility.”

Yet lasting price stability remains elusive — and with oil and gas demand largely inelastic, the world must brace for an era of more expensive gas.

Copper fell to a one-week low on Friday, heading for a second consecutive weekly loss, as global financial stocks declined amid signs of credit stress in US regional banks, sparking concerns across markets.

Three-month benchmark copper futures on the London Metal Exchange dropped 1.7% to 10,466 dollars per metric ton at 09:15 GMT, after falling as much as 2% earlier in the session to 10,430 dollars — the lowest since October 10. The metal had reached a 16-month high of 11,000 dollars on October 9.

Thu Lan Nguyen, Head of Currency and Commodity Research at Commerzbank, said, “Markets are operating in a risk-off environment, with higher-risk assets facing clear selling pressure.”

She added that copper’s losses were partly limited by the weaker US dollar, which makes dollar-priced commodities cheaper for investors holding other currencies. Still, the metal — widely viewed as a barometer of global economic health — was on track to end the week down about 0.5%.

Pessimism deepened in the base metals market after shares of US regional banks plunged due to rising credit risk concerns and deteriorating loan quality, dampening investor appetite for growth-linked assets. “This is another worrying sign about the state of the US economy,” Nguyen said.

Investors are also monitoring escalating tensions between the United States and China, the world’s largest consumer of copper, after Beijing accused Washington on Thursday of spreading panic over China’s export restrictions on rare earth metals.

Data from the Shanghai Futures Exchange showed copper inventories rose by 550 tons last week to 110,240 tons — the highest since April 25.

Most other base metals on the London Metal Exchange also declined on Friday: aluminum fell 1.4% to 2,748.50 dollars per ton, zinc dropped 1.6% to 2,926.50 dollars, nickel slipped 1.16% to 15,100 dollars, and tin plunged 3% to 34,650 dollars.

Lead was the only gainer, rising 0.3% to 1,970 dollars per ton.

Bitcoin fell on Friday, heading for a second consecutive weekly loss, as risk appetite in cryptocurrency markets came under renewed pressure from escalating trade tensions between the United States and China and growing concerns over credit risks.

Cryptocurrencies tracked global market declines, with Wall Street and most international equities falling amid rising economic uncertainty, while the ongoing US government shutdown continued to weigh on sentiment — particularly after delays in the release of key economic indicators.

Bitcoin dropped 1.9% to 108,830.2 dollars as of 1:37 a.m. Eastern Time (05:37 GMT), putting the world’s largest cryptocurrency on track for a weekly loss of about 1.7% after plunging 10% the previous week.

The coin has struggled to recover from last week’s sudden crash, which wiped out nearly half a trillion dollars in total crypto market capitalization, sending Bitcoin to as low as 103,000 dollars. The selloff was triggered by intensifying US-China trade tensions and a record 16 billion dollars in long-position liquidations.

Although Bitcoin managed to recover part of its losses this week on the back of dovish signals from the Federal Reserve, it remains well below its early October all-time highs above 126,000 dollars.

Risk aversion intensified further this week as worries grew over credit risks among US regional banks, leading to sharp declines in bank stocks on Thursday that spilled over into global markets.

Ripple Seeks to Raise $1 Billion to Repurchase XRP Tokens

Bloomberg reported on Friday that Ripple Labs — the issuer of the XRP token — is leading efforts to raise 1 billion dollars to establish a reserve of its cryptocurrency.

While such moves typically boost token prices, XRP showed little positive reaction, falling 3.7% to 2.3385 dollars and remaining near its 11-month low reached during last week’s market crash.

Bloomberg said the funding would be conducted through a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), with Ripple contributing a portion of its existing XRP reserves to the new fund.

Over the week, XRP was down about 2% after sliding nearly 19.8% the previous week.

Oil prices fell on Friday, heading for a weekly loss of nearly 3%, after the International Energy Agency (IEA) projected an increase in global supply surpluses over the coming years, while US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to hold a new summit to discuss the war in Ukraine.

Brent crude futures fell by 44 cents, or 0.7%, to 60.62 dollars a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude declined by a similar amount to 57.02 dollars a barrel, down 0.8%.

The decline came after Trump and Putin agreed on Thursday to hold a new summit in Budapest within the next two weeks, a surprise development that coincided with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s visit to the White House on Friday to request additional military support — including long-range US Tomahawk missiles — as Washington presses India and China to halt imports of Russian oil.

Tamas Varga, analyst at PVM, said the diplomatic move may signal a possible softening of the US stance toward Russia. “If that happens, it would likely lead to lower oil prices,” he added.

Varga explained that previous drone attacks by Ukraine on Russian refineries and threats of secondary sanctions on buyers of Russian oil, such as India and China, had supported prices, “but that could now change.”

Weekly losses were also driven by escalating trade tensions between the United States and China, which have heightened fears of a global economic slowdown and weaker energy demand.

“These developments completely undermine confidence,” said Jorge Montepeque, managing director at Onyx Capital Group. “I expect the US economy to feel the impact of these pressures very quickly.”

Further pressure came after the IEA’s latest report projected a growing oil supply surplus by 2026.

In the United States, data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) on Thursday showed that crude inventories rose by 3.5 million barrels to 423.8 million barrels last week, compared with analysts’ expectations for an increase of just 288,000 barrels, according to a Reuters survey.

The larger-than-expected inventory build was attributed to lower refinery utilization as plants enter the fall maintenance season. The data also showed US crude production rising to a record 13.636 million barrels per day.

In the previous session, Brent crude closed down 1.37%, while WTI fell 1.39%, both hitting their lowest levels since May 5.