After pushing above $2.40/MMBtu, natural gas futures steadied a bit Wednesday as traders looked ahead to the newest government storage data for further direction. The September Nymex gas futures contract settled at $2.426, up nine-tenths of a cent from Tuesday’s close. October nudged 0.007 cents higher to $2.563.

Storage estimates

Spot gas prices were mixed as the only pockets of strong demand were limited to the western half of the country. NGI’s Spot Gas National Avg. dropped 8.0 cents to $2.220.

The last couple of weeks in the natural gas market have been a whirlwind, with anticipation of rising export demand. Higher global gas prices have fueled a more than 60-cent rally at the front of the Nymex curve since the beginning of August.

Mobius Risk Group noted the gains have extended...