Oil & Gas Prices - Dec 26

[dan_s]

EIA's weekly storage reports won't be released until Friday, December 27 due the Christmas holiday on Wednesday.

Trading Economics

WTI Oil
WTI crude oil futures steadied around $70 per barrel, supported by stimulus measures in China and a US industry report highlighting a decline in crude stockpiles.
In China, local officials have more flexibility in using government bond proceeds to stimulate growth, while interest rates remain unchanged. The government has committed to a "moderately loose" monetary policy.
In the US, the American Petroleum Institute reported a 3.2 million barrel drop in commercial crude inventories, marking a fifth consecutive decrease, if confirmed by official data.
Typically, US stockpiles fall in December before rising in early months.
WTI crude price is on track for a modest annual drop of around 2%, with prices largely stagnant since mid-October.
As 2025 approaches, traders are considering the potential impact of Donald Trump’s presidency, China’s economic efforts, and OPEC+'s gradual easing of production cuts.

U.S. Natural Gas
US natural gas futures fell more than 3% to below $3.7/MMBtu on Thursday, retreating from a near two-year high amid mixed weather forecasts and holiday-thinned trading. Disagreement between US and European weather models added uncertainty, with the European outlook showing a warmer start to the year.
Meanwhile, gas output in the Lower 48 states averaged 103.1 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) so far in December, while LNG exports are on track to reach a record 14.8 bcfd, driven by robust global demand.
Inventories are expected to decline in the latest storage report for the week ending December 20th, with projections ranging from a 74 to 115 billion cubic feet draw.

Weather Forecast: After a brief period of mild temperatures in the NE quarter of the U.S. during the last few days of December, the temperature should go below normal through January 20th. See 10-Day forecast for Chicago here:
https://weather.com/weather/tenday/l/c657780d487f955cbdab2fa228cbce3b5a314e7694057bf286e43a46eed060a8