Investing.com - U.S. natural gas prices inched up slightly on Monday, but gains were limited as warm weather and healthy stockpiles remained on investors' minds.
Natural gas for delivery in December on the New York Mercantile Exchange tacked on 0.9 cents, or 0.42%, to trade at $2.154 per million British thermal units during U.S. morning hours. It earlier fell by as much as 2.85% to $2.051, the lowest since October 28.
The more actively-traded January contract inched up 2.0 cents, or 0.89%, to $2.311 per million British thermal units.
Natural gas tumbled 30.4 cents, or 9.15%, last week, amid indications demand for the fuel was likely to remain limited after meteorologists predicted warmer-than-normal temperatures in much of the U.S. in the weeks ahead.
Prices of the fuel 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.
Prices are down almost 30% from highs hit in mid-August. Futures fell to multi-year lows near $2 per million British thermal units at the end of October, before rebounding slightly.
Natural gas futures have closely tracked weather forecasts in recent weeks, as traders try to gauge the impact of shifting outlooks on early-winter heating demand.
The heating season from November through March is the peak demand period for U.S. gas consumption.
Meanwhile, U.S. supply levels remained in focus. The U.S. Energy Information Administration said natural gas supplies in storage rose by 15 billion cubic feet last week, below expectations for an increase of 18 billion.
Total U.S. natural gas storage stood at a record-high of 4.000 trillion cubic feet, 10.1% higher than levels at this time a year ago and 5.2% 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.
Market experts warned that stockpile buildups will probably continue for at least another week, two weeks beyond what is normal, due to tepid winter heating demand so far.
Inventories of the gas are typically built up during the warm summer months and then drawn down in the winter as cold temperatures increase demand for the fuel.
Elsewhere on the Nymex, crude oil for delivery in January rose 18 cents, or 0.43%, to trade at $42.08 a barrel, while heating oil for December delivery jumped 1.44% to trade at $1.391 per gallon.