-- Natural gas prices were up early Friday to a three-week high despite mild long term forecasts and a day-prior report that showed inventories continued to rise last week.
Gas for June delivery was last seen up $0.04 to US$2.81 per million British thermal units, the highest since April 7.
The rise comes despite mild long-term forecasts, with the National Weather Service's six to 14 day outlook expecting most states east of the Rocky Mountains to see cooler than seasonal temperatures over the period, keeping cooling demand light.
In its weekly report, the Energy Information Administration reported U.S. inventories of the fuel rose by 79-billion cubic feet last week, in line with expectations and leaving stocks at 2.14-trillion cubic feet, 7.7% above the five-year average.