Investing.com - Natural gas futures fell sharply to hit the lowest level since February on Wednesday, as extended forecasts showing cool summer temperatures continued to weigh on sentiment.
Market participants looked ahead to Thursday’s closely-watched U.S. supply data to gauge the strength of demand from U.S. households.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, natural gas futures for delivery in September traded at USD3.265 per million British thermal units during U.S. morning trade, down 1.6%.
Nymex gas prices fell to a session low of USD3.261 per million British thermal units earlier in the day, the weakest level since February 22.
The September contract was flat on Tuesday, settling at USD3.318 per million British thermal units.
Weather forecasting models continued to point to cooler temperatures across much of the U.S. Northeast and Midwest over the next six-to-ten-days, dampening summer cooling demand for the fuel.
Demand for natural gas tends to fluctuate in the summer based on hot weather and air conditioning use.
Meanwhile, U.S. supply levels also remained in focus. Total U.S. natural gas storage stood at 2.845 trillion cubic feet as of last week, just 1% below the five-year average.
Natural gas storage in the U.S. rose by 59 billion cubic feet last week, above expectations for an increase of 56 billion cubic feet.
Early injection estimates for this week’s storage data range from 60 billion cubic feet to 74 billion cubic feet, compared to a 25 billion cubic feet increase during the same week a year earlier.
The five-year average for the week is a build of 42 billion cubic feet.
Elsewhere on the NYMEX, light sweet crude oil futures for delivery in September was little changed to trade at USD105.31 a barrel, while heating oil for September delivery lost 0.6% to trade at USD2.991 per gallon.
Market participants looked ahead to Thursday’s closely-watched U.S. supply data to gauge the strength of demand from U.S. households.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, natural gas futures for delivery in September traded at USD3.265 per million British thermal units during U.S. morning trade, down 1.6%.
Nymex gas prices fell to a session low of USD3.261 per million British thermal units earlier in the day, the weakest level since February 22.
The September contract was flat on Tuesday, settling at USD3.318 per million British thermal units.
Weather forecasting models continued to point to cooler temperatures across much of the U.S. Northeast and Midwest over the next six-to-ten-days, dampening summer cooling demand for the fuel.
Demand for natural gas tends to fluctuate in the summer based on hot weather and air conditioning use.
Meanwhile, U.S. supply levels also remained in focus. Total U.S. natural gas storage stood at 2.845 trillion cubic feet as of last week, just 1% below the five-year average.
Natural gas storage in the U.S. rose by 59 billion cubic feet last week, above expectations for an increase of 56 billion cubic feet.
Early injection estimates for this week’s storage data range from 60 billion cubic feet to 74 billion cubic feet, compared to a 25 billion cubic feet increase during the same week a year earlier.
The five-year average for the week is a build of 42 billion cubic feet.
Elsewhere on the NYMEX, light sweet crude oil futures for delivery in September was little changed to trade at USD105.31 a barrel, while heating oil for September delivery lost 0.6% to trade at USD2.991 per gallon.