The NYMEX December natural gas futures contract settled 13.1 cents lower at $2.145/MMBtu Friday as weather forecasts tempered expectations for bullish heating demand. Friday’s session marked the fourth straight lower settlement for the contract, which fell 24 cents, or 10%, between Monday’s and Friday’s close. Friday’s settlement was the lowest so far this month. WSI’s updated 11- to 15-day forecast showed the expansion of below-average temperatures out of the West and into the eastern two-thirds of the US, but the forecast was generally warmer than Thursday’s. “We still see above-average heating demand and robust storage withdrawals as likely, but the cold looks less intense than a day ago, Tim Evans, energy futures specialist with Citi Futures Perspective, said in a market note. Thursday’s US Energy Information Administration storage report, showing a 15-Bcf build to bring inventories to 4 Bcf, also was fresh in traders’ minds. “Despite the lower-than-expected build […]