US natgas prices steady, boosted by high crude price, pressured by ample storage

U.S. natural gas futures held near a two-week low on Thursday, supported by surging oil prices and boosted demand forecasts for the next two weeks but pressured by near-record output and a bigger-than-expected weekly storage build.

Front-month gas futures for October delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange rose 1.2 cents, or 0.4%, to settle at $2.834 per million British thermal units. On Wednesday, the contract closed at its lowest since August 25.

Oil futures jumped 6% on Thursday, with both major benchmarks trading at over $100 a barrel as the biggest spike in attacks on shipping since the Iran war began fed worries among traders about further disruptions to already tight supplies.