Natural Gas Futures Turn Higher After Bullish Weekly Storage Data

Investing.com – Natural gas futures were higher on Thursday, finding support after data showed that domestic supplies in storage fell more than forecast last week.

Front-month U.S. gained 1.7 cents, or around 0.6%, to $2.603 per million British thermal units (btu) by 10:45AM ET (1545GMT). Futures were at around $2.593 prior to the release of the supply data.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration said in its weekly report that natural gas storage in the U.S. fell by (bcf) in the week ended Feb. 9, above forecasts for a withdrawal of 183 bcf.

That compared with a decline of 119 bcf in the preceding week, a fall of 114 bcf a year earlier and a five-year average drop of 154 bcf.

Total natural gas in storage currently stands at 1.884 trillion cubic feet (tcf), according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

That figure is 577 bcf, or around 23.4%, lower than levels at this time a year ago and 433 bcf, or roughly 18.6%, below the five-year average for this time of year.

It fell to its lowest since May 2016 at $2.530 earlier in the session amid speculation the end of the winter heating season will bring warmer temperatures throughout the U.S. and cut into demand for the fuel.

Market experts warned that futures are likely to remain vulnerable in the near-term as the coldest part of the winter has effectively passed and below-normal temperatures in April mean less than they do in January and February.

Spring usually sees the weakest demand for natural gas in the U.S, as the absence of extreme temperatures curbs demand for heating and air conditioning.

The heating season from November through March is the peak demand period for U.S. gas consumption.

Disclaimer: Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. All CFDs (stocks, indexes, futures) and Forex prices are not provided by exchanges but rather by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual market price, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Therefore Fusion Media doesn`t bear any responsibility for any trading losses you might incur as a result of using this data.

Fusion Media or anyone involved with Fusion Media will not accept any liability for loss or damage as a result of reliance on the information including data, quotes, charts and buy/sell signals contained within this website. Please be fully informed regarding the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, it is one of the riskiest investment forms possible.