NEW YORK: US natural gas futures edged up to a one-week high on Friday before the long US Presidents’ Day weekend on near-record flows of gas to liquefied natural gas export plants and forecasts for more demand this week than previously expected.
That small price increase came despite forecasts for the weather to remain warmer than normal through the end of February, which should keep heating demand low and allow energy firms to pull less gas from storage than usual over the next couple of weeks.
Gas futures for March delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange rose 2.6 cents, or 0.8percent, to settle at USD3.243 per million British thermal units, their highest close since February 6.
That put the contract down about 5percent for the week after it lost about 21percent last week and 17percent two weeks ago.
In the cash market, average prices at the Waha Hub in the Permian Basin in West Texas remained in negative territory for a seventh day in a row and the 16th time this year, as pipeline constraints trapped gas in the nation’s biggest oil-producing basin.
Daily Waha prices first fell below zero in 2019. They did so 17 times in 2019, six times in 2020, once in 2023, a record 49 times in 2024, and 39 times in 2025.
Waha prices have averaged USD1.33 per mmBtu so far this year, compared with USD1.15 in 2025 and a five-year average (2021-2025) of USD2.88.
Financial firm LSEG said average gas output in the Lower 48 states climbed to 107.8 billion cubic feet per day so far in February, up from 106.3 bcfd in January. That compares with a monthly record high of 109.7 bcfd in December.
After extreme cold over the past couple of weeks, meteorologists projected weather across much of the country would remain mostly warmer than normal through at least February 28.
If those forecasts are correct, analysts expect heating demand will remain lower than normal through the end of February, which should allow energy firms to leave more gas in storage than usual, wiping out the current inventory deficit by early March. There is currently about 6percent less gas in stockpiles than usual for this time of year.
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