Investing.com - Natural gas futures edged higher on Monday as updated weather-forecasting models called for a storm system to trek across the U.S. and bring cooling temperatures in its wake, which should drive demand for heating.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, natural gas futures for delivery in November were up 0.84% at $3.892 per million British thermal units during U.S. trading. The commodity hit a session low of $3.820, and a high of $3.899.
The November contract settled up 0.36% on Friday to end at $3.859 per million British thermal units.
Natural gas futures were likely to find support at $3.815 per million British thermal units, last Thursday's low, and resistance at $4.184, the high from Oct. 1.
There was no floor trading on the Nymex on Monday because of the Columbus Day holiday in the U.S. All electronic transactions will be booked with Tuesday's trades for settlement.
Futures rose on news of a strong weather system set to trek across the central and eastern U.S. over the next several days and bring showers, thunderstorms and below-normal temperatures.
"The eastern U.S. will begin the week mild as high pressure brings temperatures into the lower 70s all the way up the Atlantic coastline. Once cooler temperatures arrive later this week over the Midwest and Northeast, additional reinforcing cool blasts will follow Friday and again next weekend, dropping overnight lows into the 30s and 40s," Natgasweather.com reported in it is Oct. 13-19 daily weather forecasts.
"High pressure will build back over the far southern U.S. as the week progresses, allowing warmer than normal temperatures to return as highs again reach the upper 80s to drive late season cooling demand."
Elsewhere, investors continued to digest Thursday's weekly inventory data, which showed that natural gas storage in the U.S. rose by 105 billion cubic feet last week.
Inventories rose by 91 billion cubic feet in the same week a year earlier, while the five-year average change is a build of 84 billion cubic feet.
Injections of gas into storage have surpassed the five-year average for 25 consecutive weeks, alleviating concerns over tightening supplies.
Total U.S. natural gas storage stood at 3.205 trillion cubic feet as of last week, narrowing the deficit to the five-year average to 11% from a record 54.7% at the end of March.
Elsewhere on the NYMEX, light sweet crude oil futures for delivery in November were down 0.29% at $85.57 a barrel, while heating oil for November delivery were down 0.22% at $2.5545 per gallon.