Investing.com - Natural gas futures extended losses on Thursday, after data showed that U.S. natural gas supplies rose more than the five-year average last week.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, natural gas for delivery in October tumbled 7.4 cents, or 1.86%, to trade at $3.942 per million British thermal units during U.S. morning hours. Prices were at $3.980 prior to the release of the supply data.
A day earlier, natural gas futures rose to $4.040, the most since September 2, before settling at $4.013, up 1.8 cents, or 0.45%.
Futures were likely to find support at $3.863 per million British thermal units, the low from September 16 and resistance at $4.040, the high from September 17.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration said in its weekly report that natural gas storage in the U.S. in the week ended September 12 rose by 90 billion cubic feet, broadly in line with market expectations.
Inventories rose by 48 billion cubic feet in the same week a year earlier, while the five-year average change is a build of 71 billion cubic feet.
Injections of gas into storage have surpassed the five-year average for 22 consecutive weeks, alleviating concerns over tightening supplies.
Total U.S. natural gas storage stood at 2.891 trillion cubic feet. Stocks were 401 billion cubic feet less than last year at this time and 444 billion cubic feet below the five-year average of 3.335 trillion cubic feet for this time of year.
Meanwhile, investors continued to monitor near-term weather forecasts to gauge the strength of demand for the fuel.
U.S. Great Lakes and northeastern states will see pockets of cooler air over the next week, which drive demand for heating, while warm temperatures over the southern U.S. will prompt households to crank up their air conditioning, forecasts that bolstered the commodity.
Elsewhere on the Nymex, crude oil for delivery in November shed 39 cents, or 0.42%, to trade at $92.81 a barrel, while heating oil for October delivery dropped 1.07% to trade at $2.715 per gallon.