Lawmakers ask for natural gas regulation

Lawmakers seeking tougher oversight of commodity exchanges assert in a report that “excessive speculation” dealt a fatal blow to Amaranth Advisors LLC, which helped drive up heating bills last winter before it lost some $6 billion on its natural gas bets.

The hedge fund at times last year controlled 40 percent or more of the natural gas contracts traded on the New York Mercantile Exchange, and as much as 75 percent in one month, according to the 135-page report by the Senate’s permanent subcommittee on investigations.

The subcommittee plans to begin a hearing on the issue Monday.

businessweek