Investing.com - U.S. natural gas futures were higher on Tuesday, rising for the first time in seven sessions as investors returned to the market to seek cheap valuations in wake of recent losses.
U.S. natural gas for July tacked on 6.8 cents, or around 2.3%, to $3.050 per million British thermal units by 8:55AM ET (1255GMT).
It settled lower for the sixth session in a row on Monday after falling to its lowest since March 20 at $2.935 after the latest U.S. weather model called for mild temperatures over the next two weeks, which should reduce heating demand during that time.
Natural gas prices have closely tracked weather forecasts in recent weeks, as traders try to gauge the impact of shifting outlooks on spring heating demand.
Gas use typically hits a seasonal low with spring's mild temperatures, before warmer weather increases demand for gas-fired electricity generation to power air conditioning.
Nearly 50% of all U.S. households use gas for heating.
Total natural gas in storage currently stands at 2.525 trillion cubic feet, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, 12.8% lower than levels at this time a year ago but 8.9% above the five-year average for this time of year.
Market participants looked ahead to weekly storage data due on Thursday, which is expected to show a build in a range between 88 and 98 billion cubic feet in the week ended June 2.
That compares with a gain of 81 billion cubic feet in the preceding week, an increase of 65 billion a year earlier and a five-year average rise of 94 billion cubic feet.