HOUSTON (Dow Jones)--Natural gas futures edged lower Wednesday, tracking crude oil, amid expectations for mild weather that could limit demand for natural gas-fired power. Natural gas for August delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange was trading 3.3 cents lower, or 0.89%, at $3.672 a million British thermal units. The contract sank as low as $3.630/MMBtu in earlier trading. Lisa Zembrodt, a commodity analyst with Summit Energy said that the natural gas market was taking its cues from oil futures. "We are drifting a bit lower following crude," Zembrodt said, adding that weather forecasts were also pressuring prices. Natural gas sometimes moves in sympathy with crude, which can act as a bellwether for the economy and overall energy demand. Oil futures recently traded 2.15% lower at 64.20 a barrel. Oil prices were lower after the American Petroleum Institute data showed an unexpected increase in U.S. crude stockpiles. Meanwhile, weather forecasts were expected to stifle demand for natural-gas fired power to cool homes and businesses. The National Weather Service forecast for July 27 to July 31 calls for below-normal temperatures across the Midwest and the Great Plains. Near-normal temperatures are expected in the Northeast and along the East Coast. "These mild patterns are showing no sign of shifting and when combined with a lack of significant tropical storm threat, maintaining upward price momentum is proving difficult regardless of activity in the oil and equity spaces," Jim Ritterbusch, president of the energy advisory firm Ritterbusch and Associates wrote in a note clients. Forecasters were also tracking a pair of tropical waves near the Bahamas. Neither was expected to intensify. "Wind shear is still sufficiently strong to prevent significant development," forecasters with the private forecasting firm Commodity Weather Group wrote in a note to clients. -By Jason Womack, Dow Jones Newswires; 713-547-9201; jason.womack@dowjones.com (END) Dow Jones Newswires

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