Natural gas futures rallied to open 2024 after updated forecasts advertised more widespread cold into mid-January, though whether this wave of bullish momentum would endure longer than the typical New Year’s resolution remained an open question.

NGI Morning Natural Gas Price & Markets Coverage

The February Nymex contract was up 10.2 cents to $2.616/MMBtu at around 8:50 a.m. ET. March was up 8.1 cents to $2.408.

After undergoing “wild swings” over the weekend, weather models entered 2024 noticeably colder compared to forecasts as of late last week, according to NatGasWeather. 

The colder European model had opened up a sizable gap in projected heating demand versus the American dataset, but this gap was effectively erased overnight, the firm said.

The European model trended warmer overnight by “showing not quite as...