Following three straight days of modest gains on hotter weather and lower production, natural gas futures pushed ahead early Thursday as traders awaited the latest government inventory data.

Markets

The July Nymex gas futures contract was up 6.3 cents at $2.405/MMBtu at around 8:40 a.m. ET.

National Weather Service (NWS) data continued to show robust heat in Texas and neighboring states in the South. NWS outlooks pointed to these conditions expanding to northern markets as June wears on, though the timing and breadth of the shift wobbled day/day in forecasts this week.

Widespread summer conditions could permeate the Lower 48 next week or wait until late June, but either way, traders have anticipated that air conditioners will be cranking in full force around or shortly after the...