Nymex natural gas closed up 2.92% on Friday as early-January forecasts turned colder in the North and West. The EIA rescheduled the inventory report for December 29, with a market consensus expecting a decline of 169 bcf. US nat-gas production is at a record high, with rigs posting a 2-year high. Lower-48 state gas production and demand were reported at 113.2 bcf/day and 87.5 bcf/day, respectively. US electricity output rose 2.3% y/y. The weekly EIA report showed a smaller draw in nat-gas inventories than expected. Active US nat-gas drilling rigs remained unchanged at 127.

Read more at Yahoo Finance: Nat-Gas Prices Rally on Colder US Forecasts for Early-January