Natural gas futures waffled between gains and losses on Wednesday as Hurricane Laura’s destruction and still anemic U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports continued to weigh on markets. After falling more than 8 cents early, the prompt month climbed back into positive territory before midday following estimates for a modest storage build that could ease concerns about fall containment challenges. Futures, however, failed to finish in the green.

The October Nymex contract settled at $2.486/MMBtu, down 4.1 cents day/day. November rose 3.0 cents to $2.931.

Spot gas prices, meanwhile, advanced amid near-term heat and lingering supply challenges post-Laura. NGI’s Spot Gas National Avg. rose 12.5 cents to $2.140.

Ahead of the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA)...