Investing.com - Natural gas futures soared to a one-week high on Friday, as a smaller-than-expected storage injection and colder forecasts boosted prices.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, natural gas for delivery in December jumped 10.1 cents, or 4.47%, to close the week at $2.361 per million British thermal units on Friday. It earlier rose to $2.391, the highest since November 6.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration said Friday natural gas supplies in storage rose by 49 billion cubic feet last week, below expectations for an increase of 51 billion.
That compared with builds of 52 billion cubic feet in the prior week, 40 billion cubic feet in the same week last year, while the five-year average change for the week is an increase of 30 billion cubic feet.
Total U.S. natural gas storage stood at an all-time high of 3.978 trillion cubic feet, almost 10% higher than levels at this time a year ago and 4.5% above the five-year average for this time of year.
Last spring, supplies were 55% below the five-year average, indicating producers have more than made up for all of last winter’s unusually strong demand.
Meanwhile, updated weather forecasting models released Friday afternoon showed cooler temperatures than previously forecast for the next two weeks in the U.S. Midwest and Southeast, which should boost early-winter heating demand for the fuel.
The heating season from November through March is the peak demand period for U.S. gas consumption.
Despite Friday's gains, the December natural gas contract lost 1.2 cents, or 0.42%, on the week, as steep declines suffered earlier in the week due to concerns over warm weather and healthy stockpiles weighed.
Natural-gas prices typically rise ahead of the winter as colder weather sparks heating demand. But a mild start to the winter heating season underlined concerns over a deepening supply glut.
Elsewhere on the Nymex, crude oil for December delivery settled at $40.74 a barrel by close of trade on Friday, down $3.78, or 8.02%, on the week, while heating oil for December delivery tumbled 7.27% on the week to settle at $1.381 per gallon.