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US Natural Gas Prices Rise for Fourth Consecutive Week Amid LNG Rebound, Weather Momentum

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US natural gas prices ended their fourth consecutive week in the green, amid persistent heat, in-line storage build and a rebound in LNG export feedgas.

In the futures market, the Nymex front-month contract ended the week at $2.939 per million British thermal units on Friday, up from $2.88/MMBtu on Aug. 28.

Natural gas spot prices increased to $2.88/MMBtu on Wednesday, up $0.07/MMBtu, according to the US Energy Information Administration's Weekly Gas Storage Supplement, released on Thursday.

This was primarily attributed to above-average regional temperatures across Central and Midwestern parts of the country, which kept cooling demand elevated.

Besides this, LNG export feedgas flows surged by around 2.0 billion cubic feet per day, or 12% during the week, leading total gas demand to rise 2.5 Bcf/d, or 2%, according to data from S&P Global Energy.

Gas supplies also rose by 1.6 Bcf/d, or 1%, driven by Canadian imports, which rose by 1.0 Bcf/d, and domestic dry gas output by 0.6 Bcf/d.

The net injection into storage for the week ended Aug. 28 was 30 Bcf, doubling from last week's 15 Bcf, bringing total gas inventories to 3,214 Bcf, according to the EIA's weekly inventory data.

The net build was in line with forecasts at 30 Bcf but below last year's 54 Bcf and the five-year average for this period of 37 Bcf, according to data compiled by Investing.com, making it a fairly mixed storage build.

At 3,214 Bcf, inventories were 160 Bcf, or 5% above the five-year average for this period, but 50 Bcf, or 2% below the same time last year.

Regional figures were mixed, with the East and Midwest regions reporting injections of 26 Bcf and 24 Bcf, respectively, while the South Central, Pacific, and Mountain regions reported withdrawals of 10 Bcf, 8 Bcf, and 2 Bcf, respectively.

Pinebrook Energy Advisors noted that persistent heat had "slowed storage growth and narrowed the surplus," and expects widespread heat during the coming week to keep oncoming storage builds relatively small.

A total of 32 LNG carriers departed US ports during the week, up by one from the prior week, with a total combined capacity of 123 Bcf, up 6 Bcf from last week.

In international markets, European TTF gas prices averaged $23.88/MMBtu for the week ended Sept. 02, $1.18/MMBtu above the prior week. Meanwhile, the Japan-Korea Marker averaged $23.33/MMBtu, about $0.26/MMBtu above the prior week.

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