Natural gas futures rose Thursday after a weekly government report showed a larger storage withdrawal from U.S. gas inventories than analysts had expected.

Natural gas for April delivery rose 2.1 cents, or 1%, to recently trade at $2.306 a million British thermal units on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Earlier in the session, prices had been flirting with fresh 10-year lows.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration said gas inventories fell by 64 billion cubic feet in the week ended Friday, a larger draw than the 57-bcf drop a survey of analysts had forecasted.

With natural gas futures near their lowest level in a decade, a signal that inventories may be declining at a slightly quicker pace offered a small window to bet on higher prices. But analysts cautioned that stockpiles remain elevated even as forecasts are calling for warmer weather ahead.

"This is a short-term reprieve in the bear market," said Phil Flynn, an energy analyst with PFGBest. "It's given someone a reason to buy for the first time in several weeks, but considering we're 52% above the five-year average, it's not enough to stop the onslaught that we've seen."

The weekly report puts natural gas inventories at 2.369 trillion cubic feet, well above the five-year average of 1.562 tcf. This time last year, inventories stood at 1.634 tcf.

A mild winter has kept demand for gas-fired heating low, holding down futures amid a supply glut in the U.S. As the U.S. exits the coldest part of the year, investors remain concerned that near-record inventories will keep pressure on prices.

Mild weather is expected to continue for the next month, according to a forecast Thursday from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. And above-normal temperatures are seen across much of the country through June.

"The super-warm pattern continues to dominate much of the U.S." said Matt Rogers, President of forecaster Commodity Weather Group, in reference to the next week.

Without a drop in temperatures, analysts say that next week's report could show the first injection of natural gas for the year.

-By Jerry A. DiColo, Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-2155, jerry.dicolo@dowjones.com