Supportive storage data ultimately proved not enough to stop another day in the red for natural gas futures. With weather models trending slightly warmer, and plump inventories intact, the May Nymex gas futures contract settled 8.6 cents lower on Thursday at $2.007/MMBtu. June futures slid 7.0 cents to $2.197.

Cash prices plummeted across the country, sending NGI’s Spot Gas National Avg. 35.5 lower to $1.980.

Coming off a winter that left much to be desired for the natural gas market, Thursday’s government inventory data were closely watched for signs of tightening given swings in production because of maintenance, strong LNG demand but lackluster weather-driven demand.

The latest storage data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) indeed pointed to modestly...