09:24 AM EDT, 03/11/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Natural gas prices fell early on Monday as mild weather continues to cut into heating demand.

Gas for April delivery was last seen down US$0.03 to US$1.78 per million British thermal units.

The drop comes even as long-term forecasts from the National Weather Service see cooler than seasonal temperatures for most states east of the Rocky Mountains over the next eight to 14 days, though nearer-term forecast see mild weather for most markets.

"Very light national demand will return the next 6-days as much of the interior US warms into the very nice 50s to 80s as unseasonably strong high pressure rules, as shown in the image. There's still expected to be colder weather systems into the US March 17-20 for stronger demand," NatGasWeather noted.

Low demand is swelling US gas inventories, with the Energy Information Administration last week saying stocks of the fuel stood at 2.33-trillion cubic feet, 30.9% above the five-year average.