US natural gas prices climbed to $2.89 per million British thermal units on Monday, driven by reduced domestic output and stronger LNG exports. Average gas production in the Lower 48 states fell to a two-week low of 111.7 bcfd on Friday, while feedgas flows to the nine major US LNG export facilities rose to a 20-week high of 18.8 bcfd.
Despite record production and mild spring weather keeping inventories above the five-year average since March, rising temperatures are now beginning to erode that surplus. Analysts estimate that storage was about 3.6% above the seasonal norm in the week ending September 11, down from 4.8% the previous week.
Looking ahead, forecasts suggest temperatures will remain mostly above normal through September 26, though conditions are expected to be less extreme than earlier projections indicated. The warmer weather is likely to keep power generators leaning more heavily on natural gas to meet elevated air-conditioning demand, offering additional support to prices.
