Futures gave back post-storage gains even as strong power-sector cooling demand and a contango incentive to refill storage are seen supporting prices into the fall.
U.S. natural gas futures gave back gains after a smaller-than-expected weekly storage injection, even as strong weather-driven power-sector demand is expected over the coming week. Eli Rubin of EBW Analytics said cooling demand may build into the end of next week and argued higher gas prices are more likely in the medium term after the market’s muted reaction to the bullish EIA storage surprise. He said the premium of January 2027 prices over October 2026 creates an incentive for marketers to fill regional storage, and that injection demand could support prices into the fall, particularly if producers respond to the same contango structure by shaping output to capture higher realized pricing. Nymex natural gas for September delivery was down 1.1% at $2.729/mmBtu.