Natural gas futures on Thursday fumbled away gains made earlier this week following a stronger-than-expected government inventory print and forecasts for benign weather and weak demand ahead.

At A Glance:

  • EIA prints 24 Bcf build
  • Production holds lower
  • Weather demand fades

Following modest gains over the prior four sessions, the May Nymex gas futures contract on Thursday settled at $1.764/MMBtu, down 12.1 cents day/day.

NGI’s Spot Gas National Avg. shed 14.0 cents to $1.175, declining a second straight day amid negative prices in West Texas and softening consumption elsewhere.

Production held between 98-99 Bcf/d, down about 3 Bcf/d from the one-year average, according to Bloomberg data.

However, National Weather Service (NWS) data showed widespread mild conditions...