NEW YORK: US natural gas futures eased on Tuesday on forecasts for less demand over the next two weeks than previously expected as liquefied natural gas (LNG) vessels steered clear of US Gulf of Mexico LNG export terminals ahead of Hurricane Laura.

The price move came despite an expected drop in daily output to its lowest since May as Laura caused Gulf Coast producers to shut offshore wells. The shutdowns helped boost gas prices to a nine-month high on Monday.

Hurricane Laura is expected to strengthen into a major Category 3 hurricane with top sustained winds of 115 miles per hour (185 km per hour) before hitting the Gulf Coast near the Texas-Louisiana border.

Front-month gas futures fell 2.4 cents, or 1.0%, to settle at $2.489 per million British thermal units. On Monday, the contract closed at its highest since November 25.

Although US, European and Asian gas contracts mostly trade on their own fundamentals, a 40% jump in prices at the Netherlands Title Transfer Facility (TTF) in Europe and a 53% increase at the Japan-Korea Marker (JKM) in Asia so far in August have made US LNG more attractive in global markets, which helped push US gas futures up about 40% this month.

On a daily basis, US LNG exports were on track to fall to a two-week low of 4.1 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) as LNG exporters shut or reduced the output of the Gulf Coast LNG terminals. Cheniere Energy Inc said it temporarily suspended operations at Sabine Pass in Louisiana, the biggest US LNG export plant.

On a daily basis, US output was on track to fall to a three-month low of 84.9 bcfd, according to preliminary data from Refinitiv that is subject to change later in the day.