How Long Will Dirt Cheap Natural Gas Prop Up U.S. Economic Activity?

Natural gas prices in the United States plunged 62% last year compared to a year earlier. Prices were driven lower by booming production, where growth substantially outpaced demand growth. The low prices for gas stimulated a surge in U.S. LNG exports, and at home, they prompted a palpable decline in household heating bills—leaving people with a bit more money to spend on other things. It is this last fact, as reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics in its latest consumer price index, that, according to Bloomberg, has helped…