The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) on Thursday reported a withdrawal of 134 Bcf from natural gas storage for the week ended Jan. 8.

EIA storage jan 8

The result exceeded both the year-earlier pull and the midpoint of analysts’ estimates, but it fell short of fueling Nymex natural gas futures.

It was “a stronger draw than we estimated…reflecting a tighter balance than we expected,” Bespoke Weather Services said.

Ahead of the EIA report, the February contract was up 2.6 cents at $2.753/MMBtu amid anticipation of a steep pull. The prompt month jumped to around $2.775 when the data was released; however, by 11 a.m. ET, it was up only a tenth of a cent from the prior day’s close at $2.728.

Analysts on The Desk’s online energy platform Enelyst said the muted market...