Last reviewed on October 3, 2026.
The 2025–26 heating season packed most of its drama into a few weeks of late January. After that, the U.S. gas market settled down quickly: by March, Henry Hub spot prices were back near $3/MMBtu and storage was ending the winter close to normal.
Prices, production and LNG exports by month
| Month | Henry Hub spot (avg, $/MMBtu) | Dry gas production (Bcf/d) | LNG exports (Bcf/d) |
|---|---|---|---|
| November 2025 | $3.79 | 110.3 | 17.5 |
| December 2025 | $4.26 | 111.6 | 18.4 |
| January 2026 | $7.72 | 108.8 | 17.4 |
| February 2026 | $3.62 | 110.7 | 17.6 |
| March 2026 | $3.04 | 110.7 | 18.5 |
| April 2026 | $2.77 | 111.0 | 17.9 |
The late-January spike
Through mid-January 2026 the EIA's Henry Hub spot price traded around $2.80–3.10/MMBtu. In the week of January 20 it climbed rapidly — $4.00, $4.96, $8.42 — and on January 23 it printed $30.72/MMBtu, the highest value in the EIA's published daily series. It was still $25.01 on January 26 and $17.19 on January 27 before easing to about $4–7 in early February. Spot prices this extreme reflect gas for immediate delivery during a demand surge; NYMEX futures, which price next month's delivery, move far less in such episodes.
Monthly dry gas production in January 2026 (108.8 Bcf/d) was lower than in December 2025 (111.6 Bcf/d) and February 2026 (110.7 Bcf/d), consistent with winter weather affecting output for part of the month.
Storage: from surplus to deficit and back
| Week ending | Stocks (Bcf) | Net change | 5-yr avg | vs 5-yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January 2, 2026 | 3,244 | −120 | 3,225 | +0.6% |
| January 9, 2026 | 3,174 | −70 | 3,079 | +3.1% |
| January 16, 2026 | 3,054 | −120 | 2,888 | +5.7% |
| January 23, 2026 | 2,813 | −241 | 2,680 | +5.0% |
| January 30, 2026 | 2,454 | −359 | 2,490 | −1.4% |
| February 6, 2026 | 2,202 | −252 | 2,344 | −6.1% |
| February 13, 2026 | 2,059 | −143 | 2,193 | −6.1% |
| February 20, 2026 | 2,007 | −52 | 2,025 | −0.9% |
| February 27, 2026 | 1,876 | −131 | 1,929 | −2.7% |
| March 6, 2026 | 1,838 | −38 | 1,865 | −1.4% |
| March 13, 2026 | 1,872 | +34 | 1,836 | +2.0% |
| March 20, 2026 | 1,818 | −54 | 1,815 | +0.2% |
| March 27, 2026 | 1,851 | +33 | 1,811 | +2.2% |
| April 3, 2026 | 1,900 | +49 | 1,824 | +4.2% |
The week ending January 30 showed a 359 Bcf withdrawal, equal to the largest weekly draw in the EIA's five-region history (also 359 Bcf, in the week ending January 5, 2018). Three consecutive draws of 241, 359 and 252 Bcf moved inventories below the five-year average. Withdrawals slowed sharply in February and March; the first net injection came in the week ending March 13, and stocks bottomed at 1,818 Bcf on March 20, about level with the five-year average for that week.
What happened next
With storage close to normal and production running above 110 Bcf/d, spot prices stayed in a narrow range through the spring and summer: monthly averages of $2.77 in April, $2.94 in May, $3.15 in June, $2.89 in July and $2.78 in August. Inventories rebuilt to 3,415 Bcf by the week ending September 25, 2026, 2.4% above the five-year average. Follow the latest weekly numbers on our storage report hub.
Sources: EIA Henry Hub spot price (daily and monthly), EIA weekly working gas in underground storage, EIA monthly dry natural gas production and LNG exports (releases of September 30 and October 1, 2026). Bcf/d values are monthly volumes divided by days in the month.