Natural gas futures were trading close to even early Wednesday as the latest forecasts continued to show mild temperatures dominating the Lower 48 through the first half of January. The February Nymex contract was off 0.3 cents to $2.441/MMBtu at around 8:45 a.m. ET.

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After undergoing a major warm shift over this past weekend, the weather models have since been “rather stable,” according to Bespoke Weather Services. The firm said temperatures through the first half of January are expected to come in 70 gas-weighted degree days warmer than five-year and 10-year norms. 

“We do still see the makings of a healthy” blocking pattern from the Arctic Oscillation and North Atlantic Oscillation, although it is “delayed a few days compared to forecasts from several days ago,”...