The NYMEX September natural gas futures contract rose 2.1 cents Thursday to settle at $2.949/MMBtu, as the US Energy Information Administration announced a lower-than-expected storage build for the week ended August 18. The EIA estimated 43-Bcf storage build for that week, below the 46 Bcf consensus estimate of analysts surveyed by S&P Global Platts. The build was also below the rolling five-year average injection of 53 Bcf — the sixth time in seven weeks a build has paced below the five-year average, according to EIA data. Stocks currently sit at an estimated 3.125 Tcf, only 1.5% above the 3.08 Tcf averaged over the past five years. Hurricane Harvey, currently in the Gulf Mexico, may also be providing support. The National Hurricane Center in its most recent forecast projected that the storm could reach Category 3 status before making landfall on the Texas coast late Friday or early Saturday morning. […]