Investing.com - U.S. natural gas futures were lower on Thursday, holding on to losses after data showed that natural gas supplies in storage in the U.S. fell broadly in line with expectations last week.
Natural gas for March delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange dipped 4.3 cents, or about 1.4%, to $3.129 per million British thermal units by 10:33AM ET (15:33GMT). Futures were at around $3.130 prior to the release of the supply data.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration said in its weekly report that natural gas storage in the U.S. declined by 87 billion cubic feet in the week ended January 27, compared to market expectations for a drop of 88 billion cubic feet.
That compares with a withdrawal of 119 billion cubic feet in the preceding week, 152 billion a year earlier and a five-year average drop of 166 billion cubic feet.
Total natural gas in storage currently stands at 2.711 trillion cubic feet, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, 9.8% lower than levels at this time a year ago and within the five-year average for this time of year.
Meanwhile, forecasts for warmer weather in key regions across the U.S. during the next few weeks weighed on heating demand expectations.
Natural gas markets have been volatile in recent weeks, changing course rapidly in response to shifting outlooks in short-term weather patterns.