On Friday, September Nymex natural gas closed at $2.92, up 2.64% (+$0.075). This uptick followed a nine-month low earlier in the week, influenced by mixed weather forecasts, with warmer temperatures projected for the western U.S. and cooler for the East from August 20-24.
As of August 8, U.S. natural gas production reached approximately 109.9 billion cubic feet per day (bcf/day), marking a 7.3% year-over-year increase. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) raised its forecast for 2025 U.S. natural gas production by 0.5% to 106.44 bcf/day. In a contrasting trend, the number of active U.S. natural gas drilling rigs fell by one to 122 rigs for the week ending August 15, down from a two-year high of 124 rigs.
Natural gas inventories rose by 56 bcf for the week ending August 1, exceeding the consensus estimate of 54 bcf and considerably above the five-year average of 33 bcf, indicating sufficient gas supplies. As of August 9, European gas storage was at 72% capacity, compared to the five-year seasonal average of 79%.
