The NYMEX August natural gas futures contract posted a preliminary settlement price of $3.577/MMBtu Monday, 1.2 cents higher than on Friday, after trading sideways on low cooling demand in the central and south-central US and some short-covering ahead of Thursday's Independence Day holiday.
"Lower-than-normal cooling demand for much of Texas, the Midwest and the Central US in the coming week" is keeping a lid on prices, said Schneider Electric analyst Matt Smith.
On the technical front, August rebounded off support at $3.50/MMBtu, added Gelber & Associates analyst Aaron Calder.
Sources said resistance was seen at $3.641 and support at $3.50/MMBtu. August traded between $3.531/MMBtu and $3.607/MMBtu Monday.
The NYMEX settlement is considered preliminary and subject to change until a final settlement price is posted at 7 p.m. ET.
