Investing.com - Natural gas futures rallied sharply on Thursday, after data showed natural gas supplies rose less than expected last week.
Natural gas for delivery in December on the New York Mercantile Exchange jumped 7.7 cents, or 3.4%, to trade at $2.339 per million British thermal units during U.S. morning hours. Prices were at around $2.315 prior to the release of the supply data.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration said in its weekly report that natural gas storage in the U.S. in the week ended October 30 rose by 52 billion cubic feet, below expectations for an increase of 60 billion.
That compares with builds of 63 billion cubic feet in the prior week, 91 billion cubic feet in the same week last year, while the five-year average change for the week is an increase of 68 billion cubic feet.
Total U.S. natural gas storage stood at 3.929 trillion cubic feet. Stocks were 371 billion cubic feet higher than last year at this time and 147 billion cubic feet above the five-year average of 3.782 trillion cubic feet for this time of year.
Stockpiles are set to reach a record by the end of this month. The EIA sees storage levels peaking at 3.956 trillion in November, which would top the November 2012 high of 3.929 trillion.
The North American natural-gas market has been mired in a supply glut for years amid robust output.
According to industry research group Baker Hughes (N:BHI), the number of rigs drilling for natural gas in the U.S. increased by four last week to 197. Natural gas traders closely watch the rig count to gauge future supply growth.
Natural gas prices have been under pressure this week as forecasts pointed to unseasonably warm readings for early November.
Natural gas prices have closely tracked weather forecasts in recent weeks, as traders try to gauge the impact of shifting outlooks on early-winter heating demand.
The heating season from November through March is the peak demand period for U.S. gas consumption.
Elsewhere on the Nymex, crude oil for delivery in December shed 55 cents, or 1.19%, to trade at $45.75 a barrel, while heating oil for December delivery declined 0.61% to trade at $1.494 per gallon.