Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO)
EIA forecasts significant decreases in U.S. liquid fuels demand during the first half of 2020 as a result of COVID-19 travel restrictions and significant disruptions to business and economic activity. EIA expects that the largest impacts will occur in the second quarter of 2020, before gradually dissipating over the course of the next 18 months. EIA expects residential consumption of natural gas to average 12.9 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) in 2020, down 5.8% from the 2019 average primarily because of warmer than-normal weather in the first quarter. Similarly, EIA expects commercial consumption of natural gas to average 9.0 Bcf/d in 2020, a decrease of 7.1%, as a result of warm weather and the slowing economy.
