A surprisingly anemic storage withdrawal caught markets off guard on Thursday, fueling bearish demand sentiment and driving natural gas futures lower despite robust liquefied natural gas (LNG) levels.

EIA storage feb 26

The April Nymex contract dropped 7.0 cents on the day and settled at $2.746/MMBtu. May shed 6.8 cents to $2.781.

Diminished near-term weather demand also dragged spot gas prices lower. NGI’s Spot Gas National Avg. shed 16.5 cents to $3.005.

LNG export volumes exceeded 11 Bcf Thursday, NGI data showed, marking a return to near-record levels on strong demand from Asia and parts of Europe. LNG feed gas levels were temporarily muted amid the disruptions imposed in February by the Artic freeze that gripped Texas and threw Gulf Coast energy operations out of sync. They have since...