EIA Natural Gas Storage Build Of +74 Bcf Misses Estimates
By: Vladimir Zernov Published: Jun 13, 2024 fxempire.com

Key Points:
• Working gas in storage increased by 74 Bcf from the previous week.
• Stocks are 573 Bcf above the five-year average for this time of the year.
• Natural gas prices are moving lower as traders react to the EIA report.

On June 13, 2024, EIA released its Weekly Natural Gas Storage Report. The report indicated that working gas in storage increased by 74 Bcf from the previous week, compared to analyst consensus of +75 Bcf. Last week, the working gas in storage increased by 98 Bcf, so today’s report showed that demand for natural gas is rising.

At current levels, stocks are 364 Bcf higher than last year and 573 Bcf above the five-year average for this time of the year. High inventory levels are a key problem for natural gas bulls.

Natural gas prices moved lower as traders reacted to the EIA report. The report has mostly met analyst expectations, but it looks that the market hoped for a lower increase in inventories due to hot weather.

The current demand for natural gas remains high due to high temperatures across the U.S. The weather forecasts stay bullish, and hot weather is expected in the next 15 days.

From the technical point of view, natural gas bulls continue to take profits after the recent move. The nearest significant resistance level for natural gas is located in the $3.02 – $3.09 range. A move above $3.09 will push natural gas towards the next resistance at $3.28 – $3.32.