Investing.com - Natural gas prices jumped up on Friday after updated weather-forecasting models called for a cold snap to trek eastward across the U.S.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, natural gas futures for delivery in November were up 1.95% at $4.009 per million British thermal units during U.S. trading. The commodity hit a session low of $3.946, and a high of $4.029.
The November contract settled down 2.26% on Thursday to end at $3.932 per million British thermal units.
Natural gas futures were likely to find support at $3.908 per million British thermal units, Thursday's low, and resistance at $4.184, Wednesday's high.
Natural gas prices rose after weather-forecasting services predicted a cool snap to trek across the northeastern U.S. in the coming days and drive demand for heating.
"A strong weather system with heavy rains, strong thunderstorms, and even a few snowflakes continues to race across the Midwest with the trailing cold front pushing deep into the Gulf Coast. More importantly to the nat gas markets, temperatures will be 8-20F cooler than normal for much of the central and eastern U.S. the next few days," Natgasweather.com reported in its Friday midday update.
"A secondary reinforcing surge of cooler Canadian air will arrive early next week and impact many of the same regions. After a brief warm up late next week, the pattern will again become active as additional Canadian cool blast line up and push deep into the central U.S. October 11-15th."
Uncertainty as to how far east the cooler weather will make it managed to drive prices up by stoking expectations that warmer air will remain and drive demand for air conditioning.
"The greatest forecast challenge remains over the eastern U.S. coast where warmer conditions are possible as cooler Canadian air struggles to advance east. This could bring slightly warmer than normal temperatures to the Southeast and eastern U.S. coastline," Natgasweather.com added.
"It should be mentioned Southern California will see a couple more days of hot temperatures as Los Angeles and San Diego reach the 90s to near 100F."
Investors continued to digest Thursday's weekly U.S. supply report, which sent prices plunging to levels ripe for profit taking.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration said Thursday that natural gas storage in the U.S. in the week ending Sept. 26 rose by 112 billion cubic feet, above expectations for an increase of 107 billion, which sent prices falling.
Inventories rose by 99 billion cubic feet in the same week a year earlier, while the five-year average change is a build of 85 billion cubic feet.
Injections of gas into storage have surpassed the five-year average for 24 consecutive weeks, alleviating concerns over tightening supplies.
Total U.S. natural gas storage stood at 3.100 trillion cubic feet. Stocks were 373 billion cubic feet less than last year at this time and 399 billion cubic feet below the five-year average of 3.499 trillion cubic feet for this time of year.
Elsewhere on the NYMEX, light sweet crude oil futures for delivery in November were down 1.52% at $89.63 a barrel, while heating oil for November delivery were down 1.21% at $2.6061 per gallon.