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U.S. natural gas futures edge lower

Published 04/24/2017, 09:00 AM
Updated 04/24/2017, 09:00 AM
© Reuters.  U.S. natural gas futures edge lower

© Reuters. U.S. natural gas futures edge lower

Investing.com - U.S. natural gas futures edged lower for the third straight session on Monday, as traders monitored shifting weather forecasts to assess the outlook for early-spring demand and supply levels.

U.S. natural gas for June delivery shed 2.2 cents, or around 0.7%, to $3.170 per million British thermal units by 9:00AM ET (13:00GMT). It fell to $3.161 earlier.

Prices of the heating fuel slumped 5.8 cents on Friday.

Weather systems will impact the Southeast and Northern parts of the U.S. during the next few days, according to forecasters at NatGasWeather.com, with showers and cooling combining to drive slightly stronger than normal demand.

As the week progresses, warm high pressure will build over the East with highs of 70s to upper 80s, driving modest early season demand for cooling.

Natural gas prices have closely tracked weather forecasts in recent weeks, as traders try to gauge the impact of shifting forecasts on early-spring demand.

The heating season from November through March is the peak demand period for U.S. gas consumption.

Nearly 50% of all U.S. households use gas for heating.

Meanwhile, market participants looked ahead to weekly storage data due on Thursday, which is expected to show a build in a range between 65 and 75 billion cubic feet in the week ended April 21.

That compares with a gain of 54 billion cubic feet in the preceding week, an increase of 73 billion a year earlier and a five-year average rise of 57 billion cubic feet.

Total natural gas in storage currently stands at 2.115 trillion cubic feet, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, 14.8% lower than levels at this time a year ago but 13.3% above the five-year average for this time of year.

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