09:29 AM EDT, 04/12/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Natural gas futures rose off a two-week low early on Friday on lower production despite mild forecasts and a larger than expected rise to US inventories reported a day earlier.

Gas for May delivery was last seen up US$0.02 to US$1.78 per million British thermal units.

The rise comes on lower production, even as demand remains low for now amid mild spring weather.

"Natural gas production dropped below 100 Bcf/d on Tuesday and is down ~1 Bcf/d on average this week," Scott Hanold, an analyst at RBC Capital Markets, noted.

The Energy Information Administration on Thursday reported US inventories of the fuel rose by 24-billion cubic feet last week, above the consensus estimate for a 13 bcf rise, pushing inventories to 2.28-trillion cubic feet, 38.4% above the five-year average.

"Yesterday's EIA weekly storage report missed bearish with a build more than 10 Bcf larger than market expectations, which led to prices selling off sharply," NatGasWeather noted.

Long-term forecasts from the National Weather Service see most states east of the Mississippi River with seasonal or warmer temperatures over the next six to 10 days, easing demand for the fuel.