FX.co ★ US Natural Gas Stocks Fall Less than Expected

In the week concluded on January 9, 2026, U.S. energy companies reduced their natural gas storage by 71 billion cubic feet (bcf), falling short of market predictions which anticipated a 90 bcf reduction. This shortfall in draw is attributed to unseasonably mild temperatures, leading to decreased heating requirements. For comparison, the same week the previous year saw a draw of 227 bcf, and the five-year average draw for this period is 146 bcf. Current total natural gas reserves decreased to 3.185 trillion cubic feet (tcf), which is approximately 1% higher than inventory levels recorded in the same week last year and around 3.4% above the five-year average benchmark for this time. In contrast, for the prior week ending on January 2, utilities had withdrawn 119 bcf from storage.