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Natural Gas Falls Off a Four-Month Higher Despite Hot Long-Term Forecasts

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Natural gas fell off a four-month high early on Friday, even as long-term forecasts expect hot weather on the way for most states, boosting cooling demand.

Gas for July delivery was last seen down US$0.03 to US$3.31 per million British thermal units, after rising to the highest since Feb.6 a day earlier.

Long-term forecasts from the National Weather Service expect nearly all states to see hotter than seasonal temperatures in its eight to 14 day forecast, raising the call on gas-fired power for air conditioning.

Still, inventories of the fuel remain robust. In its weekly survey released on Thursday, the Energy Information Administration reported gas stocks rose by 95-billion cubic feet last week to 2.58-trillion cubic feet, 5.7% above the five-year average.

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