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Natural Gas Hits Three-Week High Ahead of U.S. Storage Data

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Natural gas rose to a three-week high early Thursday ahead of fresh storage data as long-range forecasts pointed to hotter-than-normal weather across major eastern U.S. markets.

Natural gas for July delivery was last seen up 2.2% at US$3.29 per million British thermal units, the highest level since June 4.

The gains came as the National Weather Service's six- to 14-day outlook forecast above-normal temperatures across most areas east of the Rocky Mountains, supporting cooling demand and air-conditioning use.

The Energy Information Administration will release its weekly report on inventories of the fuel, with a lower than average rise in stocks expected.

"For the EIA report, survey averages suggest a build of +67-70 Bcf, slightly lighter than the 5-year average of +75 Bcf. It was near to cooler vs normal over most of the interior US, while hotter vs normal over the western US & East Coast. We expect a build of +71-72 Bcf," NatGasWeather wrote.

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