Despite strong production levels and festering weather worries, natural gas futures recovered some ground on Friday, as traders saw a buying opportunity after the prompt month shed 12 cents a day earlier and reached its lowest level of the fall months.

covid chart Nov. 20

Futures have in November struggled to maintain momentum amid forecasts for unseasonably warm weather, bearish storage injections and a recovery in Lower 48 production that has offset solid demand for liquified natural gas (LNG) exports. New restrictions to combat coronavirus spread that could diminish energy demand from the industrial sector has infused additional uncertainty.

Traders, however, shrugged off those concerns Friday, and the December Nymex contract gained 5.8 cents day/day to settle at $2.650/MMBtu. January gained 5.0...