Natural gas forward prices remained largely range bound in mid-July, but blazing heat out West led to huge, double-digit gains in the region for the rest of summer. Still, with a persistently large storage surplus and lackluster cooling demand across most of the rest of the country, August fixed prices averaged a moderate 11.0 cents higher for the July 13-19 period, according to NGI’s Forward Look. The balance of summer (August-October) picked up an average 10.0 cents.

Gains were smaller further out the curve, with the winter strip (November-March) tacking on only 2.0 cents on average and prices for next summer (April-October) slipping 2.0 cents on average, Forward Look data showed.

The mostly sideways forward price action in the United States is a reflection of the ongoing...