U.S. utilities injected 89 Bcf of natural gas into storage for the week ended May 13, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported Thursday. The result was on par with expectations but left inventories relatively lean for this time of year. Nymex natural gas futures crept back from early trading lows in response.

Temperatures during the report week were “much hotter than normal” for most of the country, NatGasWeather said, galvanizing robust cooling demand. However, wind generation was also strong, helping to meet demand in Texas and other markets.

Prior to the report, the June futures contract traded down 13.8 cents at $8.230/MMBtu. The prompt month climbed back to $8.265 when the EIA data was released at 10:30 a.m. ET.

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