Natural gas futures rebounded early Wednesday, as liquefied natural gas (LNG) levels bounced back and reassured markets of robust export demand. Still, bearish tilts in domestic weather outlooks and estimates for a higher storage injection put downward pressure on futures in afternoon trading.

EIA storage july 9

The August Nymex contract ultimately fell 3.6 cents day/day and settled at $3.660/MMBtu on Wednesday. The prompt month had shed 5.3 cents a day earlier. The September contract slipped 3.4 cents on Wednesday to $3.648.

NGI’s Spot GasNational Avg. moved sideways through most of the day, finishing up 2.0 cents to $3.635.

While demand this week is holding strong, bolstered by persistent heat in the West and upper high pressure over large swaths of the East Coast, forecasts called for...