Investing.com - U.S. natural gas futures sank to a two-month low in North America trade on Thursday, after data showed that natural gas supplies in storage in the U.S. rose more than forecast last week.
Natural gas for delivery in September on the New York Mercantile Exchange slumped 2.1 cents, or 0.82%, to trade at $2.540 per million British thermal units by 14:34GMT, or 10:34AM ET.
Prices dropped to as low as $2.530 immediately after the report, a level not seen since June 9. Futures were at around $2.573 prior to the release of the supply data.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration said in its weekly report that natural gas storage in the U.S. rose by 29 billion cubic feet in the week ended August 5, more than forecasts for an increase of 25 billion.
That compared with a surprise drop of 6 billion cubic feet in the preceding week, 65 billion a year earlier and a five-year average of 53 billion cubic feet.
Total U.S. natural gas storage stood at 3.317 trillion cubic feet, 10.9% higher than levels at this time a year ago and 13.3% above the five-year average for this time of year.
A day earlier, prices sank 5.4 cents, or 2.07%, as traders reacted to milder weather and the reality that higher summer demand for the commodity is coming to an end.
Demand for natural gas tends to rise in the summer months as warmer temperatures increase the need for gas-fired electricity to power air conditioning.
Natural gas futures have been under pressure in recent days amid speculation that August heat won’t prevent stockpiles from reaching a record before the winter.
Unless intense summer heat boosts demand from power plants, stockpiles will test physical storage limits of 4.3 trillion cubic feet at the end of October.