Investing.com - Natural gas futures declined during U.S. morning trade on Wednesday, as market players continued to focus on near-term weather forecasts to gauge the strength of demand for the fuel.
Traders also 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 August traded at USD3.633 per million British thermal units during U.S. morning trade, down 1.2% on the day.
The August contract fell by as much as 1.3% earlier in the day to hit a session low of USD3.629 per million British thermal units.
Weather forecasting models pointed to blistering heat across key consuming regions in the U.S. during the next five days, boosting near-term demand expectations for the fuel.
Temperatures across the U.S. Northeast were expected to remain in the 90’s into the weekend.
But longer-term outlooks pointed to moderating temperatures for next week.
In the outlook for the next 11-to-15 days, weather conditions in the Northeast are expected to fall back to normal seasonal levels.
The U.S. Northeast is a key gas-consuming region. Moderate summer temperatures reduce the need for gas-fired electricity to cool homes.
Meanwhile, U.S. supply levels also remained in focus. Total U.S. natural gas storage stood at 2.687 trillion cubic feet as of last week, just 0.8% below the five-year average and 14% below last year's level.
Early injection estimates for Thursday’s storage data range from 50 billion cubic feet to 70 billion cubic feet, compared to a 29 billion cubic feet increase during the same week a year earlier.
The five-year average for the week is a build of 70 billion cubic feet.
Elsewhere on the NYMEX, light sweet crude oil futures for delivery in September fell 0.15% to trade at USD105.54 a barrel, while heating oil for August delivery eased up 0.1% to trade at USD3.049 per gallon.
Traders also 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 August traded at USD3.633 per million British thermal units during U.S. morning trade, down 1.2% on the day.
The August contract fell by as much as 1.3% earlier in the day to hit a session low of USD3.629 per million British thermal units.
Weather forecasting models pointed to blistering heat across key consuming regions in the U.S. during the next five days, boosting near-term demand expectations for the fuel.
Temperatures across the U.S. Northeast were expected to remain in the 90’s into the weekend.
But longer-term outlooks pointed to moderating temperatures for next week.
In the outlook for the next 11-to-15 days, weather conditions in the Northeast are expected to fall back to normal seasonal levels.
The U.S. Northeast is a key gas-consuming region. Moderate summer temperatures reduce the need for gas-fired electricity to cool homes.
Meanwhile, U.S. supply levels also remained in focus. Total U.S. natural gas storage stood at 2.687 trillion cubic feet as of last week, just 0.8% below the five-year average and 14% below last year's level.
Early injection estimates for Thursday’s storage data range from 50 billion cubic feet to 70 billion cubic feet, compared to a 29 billion cubic feet increase during the same week a year earlier.
The five-year average for the week is a build of 70 billion cubic feet.
Elsewhere on the NYMEX, light sweet crude oil futures for delivery in September fell 0.15% to trade at USD105.54 a barrel, while heating oil for August delivery eased up 0.1% to trade at USD3.049 per gallon.