Natural gas futures reversed lower early Friday as traders and analysts continued to assess balances following the latest government inventory data and in the wake of a disruption to Gulf of Mexico (GOM) production volumes.

NGI Morning Natural Gas Price & Markets Coverage

After surging 67.2 cents higher in the previous session, the September Nymex contract was off 16.4 cents to $8.710/MMBtu as of around 8:50 a.m. ET.

The Energy Information Administration (EIA) on Thursday reported a 44 Bcf injection into U.S. natural gas storage for the week ended Aug. 5, slightly higher than expectations but in line with historical norms.

Total Lower 48 working gas in underground storage finished the period at 2,501 Bcf, or 338 Bcf (minus 11.9%) below the five-year average.

“On a weather-adjusted basis, we estimate the market was...