Adds latest prices

By Scott DiSavino

Oct 23 (Reuters) -U.S. natural gas futures edged up about 1% on Wednesday on forecasts for cooler weather and more heating demand over the next two weeks than previously expected.

Even though the latest forecasts were cooler, meteorologists still expect the weather to remain warmer than normal through early November.

Front-month gas futures NGc1 for November delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) rose 3.1 cents, or 1.3%, to settle at $2.342 per million British thermal units (mmBtu).

That small price increase pushed the front-month out of technically oversold territory for the first time in six days.

Open interest in NYMEX futures, meanwhile, rose to 1.649 million contracts on Monday, the most since October 2018.

Financial group LSEG said average gas output in the Lower 48 U.S. states slipped to 101.5 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) so far in October, down from 101.8 bcfd in September. That compares with a record 105.5 bcfd in December 2023.

Analysts have projected that energyfirms would cut output in calendar 2024 for the first time since 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic cut demand for the fuel.

That's because many producers have curtailed drilling activities so far this year after gas prices at the U.S. Henry Hub NG-W-HH-SNL benchmark in Louisiana fell to a 32-year low in March. Prices have remained relatively low since then. NGAS/POLL HH/GAS

MILD WEATHER

Meteorologists projected temperatures in the Lower 48 states will remain warmer than normal through at least Nov. 7. Despite those mild forecasts, it will be cooler in November with more heating demand than in October.

The average temperature in the Lower 48 will drop to around 55 degrees Fahrenheit (12.8 Celsius) in early November, according to the latest forecasts, down from an average of 60F now. That would still be above the normal average of 51 F in early November.

With cooler weather coming, LSEG forecast average gas demand in the Lower 48, including exports, would rise from 95.7 bcfd this week to 99.3 bcfd next week. Theforecast for next week waslower than LSEG's outlook on Tuesday.

The amount of gas flowing to the seven big U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG)export plants rose to an average of 13.0 bcfd so far in October, up from 12.7 bcfd in September. That compares with a monthly record high of 14.7 bcfd in December 2023.

The U.S. became the world's biggest LNG supplier in 2023, ahead of recent leaders Australia and Qatar, as much higher global prices feed demand for more exports due in part to supply disruptions and sanctions linked to Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Gas prices were trading around $13 per mmBtu at the Dutch Title Transfer Facility (TTF) benchmark in Europe TRNLTTFMc1 and $14 at the Japan Korea Marker (JKM) benchmark in Asia JKMc1. NG/EU

Reporting by Sherin Elizabeth Varghese in Bengaluru; Editing by Andrea Ricci and Marguerita Choy

For gas data on the LSEG terminal type ENERGY in the search bar and then go to the GAS drop down and the NORTH AMERICA drop down.

For Interactive Map, type 'Interactive Map' in the box at upper left of the LSEG terminal

For graphics on Baker Hughes rig counts, see: http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/15/rigcount/index.html

For next-day SNL U.S. gas prices, see: 0#SNL-NG

For next-day SNL U.S. power prices, see: 0#SNL-PWR

For U.S. natgas price and storage polls, see: NGAS/POLL

For U.S. nuclear power outages, see: NUKE/

For U.S. Northwest hydro power report, see: NWRFC

For U.S./Canada natural gas rig count vs Henry Hub futures price, see: http://tmsnrt.rs/2eT9k44

For the U.S. natural gas speed guide, see: USGAS

For the U.S. power speed guide, see: USPOWER

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NYMEX Henry Hub options and futures combined 0#3CFTC023651

NYMEX Henry Hub futures only 0#1CFTC023651

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