US natural gas prices rise on expectation of hotter weather

Natural gas prices in the US gained over 2% on Wednesday, breaking a two-day streak of losses. Additionally, hotter weather is expected to boost fuel demand over the next two weeks, Business Recorder reports. 

Director of market research at Tradition Energy, Gary Cunningham, says the main risk lies in price movement following a storage report released by the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) every week. He believes lower-than-expected gas injections could push January contracts to $5. 

Meanwhile, LSEG reports that average fuel production in the Lower 48 states climbed to 106.2 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) in July, up from 105.9 bcfd last month. At that time, pipeline maintenance curbed output.

The company also projects gas demand in the Lower 48, including exports, will surge to 106.1 bcfd this week due to warmer weather. Last week, fuel consumption reached 103.7 bcfd.