New York, Jan 27, 2026, 10:43 (ET) — Regular session
- NYMEX March natural gas fell more than 5% to around $3.69 per mmBtu as the benchmark rolled to March
- U.S. gas-linked names including UNG, EQT and Antero traded lower in morning trade
- Traders are looking to Thursday’s U.S. storage report for a first read on storm-driven withdrawals
U.S. natural gas futures fell more than 5% on Tuesday, with the March Henry Hub contract down 20.9 cents at $3.689 per million British thermal units (mmBtu), a standard gas pricing unit. The contract has rolled to March, a shift that can make day-to-day moves look sharper than the underlying change in supply and demand.
The pullback follows a storm-driven surge in the expiring front-month contract. Peak U.S. natural gas production losses were estimated around 20 billion cubic feet per day, while front-month gas futures jumped nearly 30% on Monday to settle at $6.80/mmBtu, their highest close since December 2022; Energy Aspects estimated production would be fully restored by Jan. 30.
Natural gas-linked equities eased in morning trade. The United States Natural Gas Fund fell 3.8%, EQT slid 2.6% and Antero Resources dropped 3.6%, while LNG exporter Cheniere Energy was down about 0.5%.
The squeeze is still showing up away from the futures curve. “The risk isn’t over, with sustained cold lingering behind the storm,” said Matthew Palmer, head of Americas gas research at S&P Global Energy, as parts of the eastern U.S. dealt with restricted gas supplies and power system stress. Reuters
The curve is also doing some of the talking. MarketWatch reported the March contract settled around $3.90 on Monday while February settled at $6.80 — a steep backwardation, where near-term contracts trade above later months — and flagged the risk of a sharp unwind once the weather premium fades.
That weather premium is no longer just a U.S. story. “The global gas market has become far more interconnected,” said Mashal Jaffery, a partner at gas and LNG commercial advisory Baringa, as swings at Henry Hub increasingly echo into overseas benchmarks via LNG trade. Reuters
But timing is messy. Contract rolls can thin liquidity and exaggerate moves, and forecasts can flip quickly; a milder turn or faster recovery in output and LNG feedgas (gas flowing into export plants) could keep pressure on the March contract and on producers’ shares.
The next hard catalyst is the weekly U.S. storage report. The next release is due Jan. 29 at 10:30 a.m. ET, with traders watching for the size of withdrawals during the cold snap and whether tightness in the physical market lingers into early February.
