Kevin Dobbs

Blistering heat through much of the summer and limited supply flowing west from the Permian Basin kept storage injections in the Pacific region in check, helping to dramatically dwindle a once-massive surplus of natural gas.

Natural gas futures slipped again Friday as the market digested a bearish storage print, looming fall weather and mounting expectations for hurricane activity that could dampen demand.

Natural gas futures nosedived Thursday after the market received bearish government inventory data and looming autumn weather presented the likelihood of fading cooling demand. Spot prices fell in tandem.

With mixed weather patterns and a government inventory update only hours away, natural gas futures traded lower early Thursday.

Natural gas futures seesawed in a narrow range of gains and losses for a second straight session on Wednesday. The prompt month hovered in the red by early afternoon trading as market participants weighed expectations for strong late-August cooling needs and bullish supply trends against expectations for retreating demand in the fall.

Permian Basin benchmark Waha cash prices, mired in a protracted slump amid limited natural gas takeaway capacity and a supply glut, may see the summer come and go without relief. But a massive new pipeline is slated to enter service this fall, promising to free up an abundance of associated gas and ease pricing pressure.

Natural gas futures traded in a narrow band early Wednesday as traders contemplated favorable late-summer fundamentals alongside the specter of fall weather and the inevitable swoon in cooling demand that it delivers.

Coming off an 11.2-cent rally the previous session, natural gas futures probed a few cents higher early Tuesday on lower production estimates. But the prompt month failed to sustain momentum as traders focused on weaker near-term demand and took profits. Cash prices also trended lower at midday.

Natural gas futures traded up a few cents early Tuesday as market participants digested an uneven weather demand forecast, a dip in production and ongoing progress toward addressing a supply overhang.

Natural gas futures on Monday advanced through early afternoon trading, propelled by forecasts for widespread heat in late August, lighter production and expectations for another big sign of tightening supply/demand with Thursday’s government inventory data. Spot prices also advanced.