Investing.com - U.S. natural gas futures rose on Thursday, reversing earlier losses despite data showed that domestic supplies in storage increased more than expected last week.
U.S. natural gas for September delivery was at $2.917 per million British thermal units by 10:40AM ET (1440GMT), up 2.3 cents, or around 0.8%. It touched its lowest since August 9 at $2.864 earlier.
Futures were at around $2.880 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. rose by 53 billion cubic feet in the week ended August 11, above forecasts for a build of 47 billion.
That compares with a gain of 28 billion cubic feet in the preceding week, a build of 22 billion a year earlier and a five-year average rise of 50 billion cubic feet.
Total natural gas in storage currently stands at 3.082 trillion cubic feet, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, 7.6% lower than levels at this time a year ago but 1.8% above the five-year average for this time of year.
Natural gas futures ended lower on Wednesday, notching their fourth straight losing session, as near-term weather forecasts turned cooler.
Natural gas prices have closely tracked weather forecasts in recent weeks, as traders try to gauge the impact of shifting outlooks on summer cooling demand.
Nearly 50% of all U.S. households use gas for cooling.