U.S. Natural Gas Rises After Drop on Forecast for Warmer Weather

Natural gas for May delivery rises as much as 0.5% to $4.104/mmBtu in electronic trading today on Nymex. * Gas declined 1 percent yesterday. Commodity Weather Group LLC in Bethesda, Maryland, predicted above-normal temperatures on the East Coast through April 12, which would reduce demand for heating. The low in New York on April 11 may be 52 degrees Fahrenheit (11 Celsius), 9 more than average, and the high may be 67, according to AccuWeather in State College, Pennsylvania. * Low in Boston on April 11 may be 45 degrees, 6 higher than usual, data from AccuWeather Inc. show. About 50 percent of U.S. households use gas for heating, according to the Energy Information Administration, the statistical arm of the Energy Department. * U.S. decreased its outlook for prices in a March 12 report. Gas prices at the benchmark Henry Hub in Erath, Louisiana, will average $3.41/mmBtu this year, lower than the previous estimate of $3.53, according to the EIA’s Short-Term Energy Outlook. * Hedge funds boosted bullish bets on U.S. natural gas to a record last week. Money managers raised net-long positions, or wagers on rising prices, for a seventh consecutive week to 393,885 futures equivalents in the seven days ended April 2, according to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s April 5 Commitments of Traders report