Natural gas futures continued to advance early Thursday as traders awaited the latest round of government inventory data, expected to reveal a lighter-than-average weekly injection that could offer signs of ongoing tightness in the market. 

NGI Morning Natural Gas Price & Markets Coverage

The July Nymex contract was up 28.9 cents to $8.985/MMBtu at around 8:50 a.m. ET.

Major surveys ahead of the latest Energy Information Administration (EIA) storage report, scheduled for 10:30 a.m. ET, have been pointing to a build in the mid-80s Bcf. The print, which covers net changes to U.S. natural gas stocks during the week ended May 27, is likely to be scrutinized for signs of continued supply/demand tightness following last week’s bullish surprise.

A Wall Street Journal poll produced estimates ranging from 73 Bcf to 92 Bcf, with an...