U.S. natural gas futures rise to two-week high on Tuesday, as expectations of unusually warm weather in September boosted hopes for natural gas demand.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, natural gas for delivery in October tacked on 0.14%, or 0.5 cents, to trade at $3.985 per million British thermal units during U.S. morning hours.
Prices climbed to a daily high of $4.019 earlier, the most since August 12. A day earlier, natural gas futures rose 2.47%, or 9.6 cents, to end at $3.979 per million British thermal units.
Futures were likely to find support at $3.830 per million British thermal units, the low from August 21 and resistance at $4.020, the high from August 12.
Updated weather forecasting models showed that above-normal temperatures will blanket most parts of the eastern and central U.S. through September 4. Demand for natural gas tends to fluctuate in the summer based on hot weather and air conditioning use.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Energy Information Administration said in its weekly report on August 22 that natural gas storage in the U.S. rose by 88 billion cubic feet last week, above expectations for an increase of 83 billion cubic feet.
Inventories rose by 58 billion cubic feet in the same week a year earlier, while the five-year average change is a build of 48 billion cubic feet.
Injections of gas into storage have surpassed the five-year average for 18 consecutive weeks, alleviating concerns over tightening supplies.
Total U.S. natural gas storage stood at 2.555 trillion cubic feet as of last week, narrowing the deficit to the five-year average to 17.3% from 18.9% a week earlier and down from a record 54.7% at the end of March.
The EIA's next storage report is slated for release on Thursday, August 28, with analysts expecting a build of 76 billion cubic feet for the week ending August 22.
Inventories rose by 65 billion cubic feet in the same week a year earlier, while the five-year average change is a build of 58 billion cubic feet.
Elsewhere on the Nymex, crude oil for delivery in October rose 0.89%, or 83 cents, to trade at $94.18 a barrel, while heating oil for October delivery tacked on 0.56% to trade at $2.857 per gallon.
