Natural Gas Prices Hold Steady Amid Offset Demand and Supply

U.S. natural gas prices are attempting to recover after a slight gain last week, but remain range-bound due to offsetting factors of high demand and record supply.

The September NYMEX contract traded between $2.78-2.81/MMBtu on Monday, with support coming from late-summer heat in the South and Southeast U.S., where air-conditioning demand is keeping power burn at high levels.

Storage data continues to favor buyers, with a smaller-than-average build of 16 Bcf for the week ended August 14, narrowing the surplus versus the five-year average to 185 Bcf or 6.2%.

LNG flows are becoming a more significant price driver, with feedgas recovering to around 17.5 Bcf/d after maintenance work and the global price gap widening sharply due to European TTF and Asian JKM prices rising amid competition for LNG cargoes.