Natural gas futures climbed in early trading Monday as chillier forecasts over the weekend bolstered expectations for heating demand later this month. Coming off an 11.1-cent rally in Friday’s session, the January Nymex contract was up another 9.8 cents to $4.023/MMBtu at around 8:50 a.m. ET. 

NGI Morning Natural Gas Price & Markets Coverage

Colder changes to the forecast provided the impetus to drive natural gas futures back above the $4 mark in early trading, according to Bespoke Weather Services.

“Weekend weather models shifted a little colder, showing enough chill in the pattern to bring demand closer to normal as we head into the latter part of the month,” Bespoke told clients early Monday. “This is the step change we were looking for, and the price reaction. From here, the key will be to see if we can take that...