NEW YORK (Dow Jones)--Natural gas futures slid Thursday as a larger-than-average weekly storage draw wasn't enough to ease concerns that supply will continue to overwhelm demand with the end of winter's peak heating demand period on the horizon.
Natural gas for March delivery settled 9.2 cents, or 2.1% lower, at $4.337 a million British thermal units on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration said Thursday that natural gas inventories fell by 189 billion cubic feet last week. The draw was in line with analysts' expectations, but failed to support a market still pressured by the perception that supplies will be more than ample to meet demand.
"The market is taking it initially as a disappointment because it wasn't a bigger withdrawal," said Jay Levine, of Enerjay LLC.
Some analysts had forecast a draw of more than 200 bcf, as frigid weather was seen forcing power producers to lean heavily on stockpiles.
"We could have expected higher withdrawal rates given how cold it has been," said Chris Kostas, a senior analyst with Energy Security Analysis Inc. "The market is not concerned" that supply draws will reduce inventories to the point where scarcity becomes an issue, he said.
Natural gas production in the lower 48 states increased 1.1% on the month in November from October levels, the EIA said last week in a monthly production report. November's figure was a high for 2010 and up 7.7% from year-earlier levels.
Natural gas in U.S. storage during the week ended Jan. 28 stood at 2.353 trillion cubic feet, the EIA said Thursday, 0.2% above the five-year average and 2.8% less than last year's levels.
The gas market has spent much of the last week in indecisive, range-bound trading, as market participants try to gauge the impact of a shifting weather outlook on demand expectations for the heating fuel. Futures settled higher Wednesday as a massive winter storm hit the U.S. from Texas through the Northeast, lifting gas-heating demand expectations.
"After this week's impressive Arctic surge, we are still monitoring a significant round two next week that could potentially deliver an equivalent intensity of above-normal heating demand," meteorologists with Commodity Weather Group said Thursday.
Temperatures are expected to moderate thereafter, which could signal further weakness in gas prices.
"If spring ever arrives, the bears could really begin to roar," said Kent Bayazitoglu, an analyst with Gelber and Associates, in a client note.