Natural gas futures extended their gains for a fourth consecutive session as weather models continue to tease more cold for the end of the month and into January. The January Nymex contract settled Monday at $2.682, up 9.1 cents from Friday’s close. February climbed 7.5 cents to $2.678.

Markets

Spot gas prices also rallied at the start of the week as back-to-back weather systems drove up demand in key regions. Driven by multi-dollar gains on the East Coast, NGI’s Spot Gas National Avg. jumped 47.0 cents to $3.035.

After earlier forecasts had all but written off cold weather for December, the recent shifts in the weather data provided a boost to futures. Though models are not in full agreement in the amount of cold seen moving through the country, there at least is some variability...