Continued expectations for widespread sweltering temperatures based on the latest forecasts had natural gas futures surging higher in early trading Monday, extending gains from late last week. After posting a 41.6-cent gain in Friday’s session, the August Nymex contract was up 23.4 cents to $7.250/MMBtu as of around 8:50 a.m. ET.

NGI Morning Natural Gas Price & Markets Coverage

Major weather models over the weekend moderated slightly in terms of total cooling degree days (CDD) but continued to advertise an “exceptionally hot” 15-day outlook, according to NatGasWeather. 

Even after easing back on projected heat, the latest model runs showed “the greatest number of CDD over a two-week period of the past four decades,” according to the firm. 

The pattern for this week through July 30 “remains impressively hot as...