EIA Reports Larger-than-expected Weekly Fall In U.S. Natural-gas Supplies

Natural-gas futures gained more ground Thursday after the U.S. Energy Information Administration reported that supplies of natural gas fell by 151 billion cubic feet for the week ended Jan. 6. That was more than the 137 billion cubic feet decline expected by analyst polled by S&P Global Platts. Total stocks now stand at 3.160 trillion cubic feet, down 363 billion cubic feet from a year ago and 4 billion cubic feet below the five-year average, the government said. February natural gas rose 20.3 cents, or 6.3%, to $3.427 per million British thermal units. It traded at $3.345 before the data.