Natural-gas futures jumped more than 6% Monday, reaching heights last seen in January amid forecasts for colder-than-normal temperatures that could drive demand for the fuel and help draw down high gas stockpiles. Natural gas for January delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange settled 34.7 cents, or 6.1%, higher at $5.99 a million British thermal units, the highest settlement price since Jan. 5. The front-month contract climbed as high as $6 in earlier trading. Expectations for below-normal temperatures over the next few weeks contributed to the buying on Monday, analysts said. "I think it's all weather, frankly," Kent Bayazitoglu, director of market analytics for Houston-based Gelber & Associates, said, noting the cold-weather forecasts were "bullish" for the market. The National Weather Service forecast for Jan. 2-6 calls for below-normal temperatures in parts of the Midwest, in the Northeast and across the Middle Atlantic. Meteorologists with the private forecasting firm Commodity Weather Group are predicting cold weather over the next two weeks across the Midwest and in the Middle Atlantic. A prolonged period of cold weather can help draw down natural-gas storage levels, which are still relatively robust. High levels of gas in storage have helped ease concerns over a short-lived supply disruption or a brief uptick in demand and have helped keep pressure on prices. Natural gas in U.S. storage for the week ended Dec. 18 stood at 3.4 trillion cubic feet -- 11.8% higher than last year and 13.1% above the five-year average. However, recent data from the EIA shows the brisk pullback in natural-gas drilling amid lower prices is beginning to cut into supplies, analysts said. In other commodity markets: COPPER: Labor uncertainty in Chile and a weak U.S. dollar helped boost prices to their highest point since August 2008. Expectations for economic recovery and thin trading also contributed to the gains, analysts said. Nearby December copper on the Comex division of Nymex settled up 4.55 cents, or 1.4%, to $3.3165 a pound. CRUDE OIL: Incidents in Russia and Iran, both large oil producers, stoked prices to a five-week high. Nymex light, sweet crude for February delivery settled 72 cents or 0.9%, higher at $78.77 a barrel, the highest settlement since Nov. 19. Russia warned it is prepared to cut off oil supplies to Europe via the Druzhba pipeline in a dispute with Ukraine over transit fees. In Iran, a clash between security forces and antigovernment protesters killed at least eight. Click here to go to Dow Jones NewsPlus, a web front page of today's most important business and market news, analysis and commentary: http://www.djnewsplus.com/access/al?rnd=NCXXrRDTIgfwH%2BM1hrGJAw%3D%3D. You can use this link on the day this article is published and the following day.

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