After opening at or near lows for the day, the futures marketrallied higher Thursday, spurred by the confluence of bullishtechnical and fundamental factors. With a 9.1-cent advance, Junebroke through several key resistance levels before eventuallyfinishing at $2.282 for the day. Estimated volume was a healthy76,540.

A Gulf Coast trader said bulls were active in the marketyesterday following the release of the American Gas Storage report.Taking into account the latest 72 Bcf injection, the year-on-yearsurplus now stands at just 103 Bcf. Another Houston-based tradersaid gains registered in the physical market also were supportive.”Utilities were definitely out in the market as buyers [Thursday].It is hot down here, and cash offers just kept getting hitthroughout the morning,” he said.

A Chicago-area trader said forecasts calling for warmtemperatures for the upper-Midwest this weekend were contributingto the strength. Chicago will see highs in the upper 70s thisweekend according to the National Weather Service. However,fundamental factors were not the sole reasons for the price run-upyesterday, he said pointing to Wednesday’s and Thursday’s lows of$2.17 and $2.175 respectively. “The double bottom sent a strongmessage of rejection to the bearish trend. Plus, June’s move higherplaced it back above the 18-day moving average,” he continued. The18-day moving average for yesterday was $2.279.

Looking ahead, the trader predicted a combination of bullishstorage reports and weather news will augment an alreadyconstructive technical picture.

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