The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) on Thursday reported an injection of 59 Bcf natural gas into storage for the week ended April 26. The result came close to expectations but was notably below historical averages.

The print reflected lighter production volumes and supported upward momentum for Nymex natural gas futures.

Ahead of the 10:30 a.m. ET government report, the June futures contract was up 5.8 cents at $1.990/MMBtu. The prompt month ticked up to around $ 1.994 when the EIA data was released. By 11 a.m. ET, it was up 9.0 cents to $2.022.

Prior to the report, injection estimates submitted to Reuters spanned 46 Bcf to 71 Bcf, with a median of 56 Bcf. Bloomberg’s poll produced a range of 46 Bcf to 92 Bcf and a median build estimate of 59 Bcf.

NGI...