Implying easing concerns over winter price upside, the Jan. 19-26 trading period brought widespread basis discounts for February natural gas forwards, while a borderline absurd futures rally served up a reminder that heating season volatility is far from over.

Hubs across the Northeast, Rockies, Midcontinent and West Coast posted week/week February basis discounts of anywhere from 20 cents to $1 or more, NGI’s Forward Look data show. That said, considering prompt month Henry Hub gained 23.9 cents week/week to average $4.300/MMBtu, the discounts were more modest in fixed price terms.

Algonquin Citygates February basis dropped 43.3 cents during the period to sit at $13.294. Northern Border Ventura saw a 96.0 cent swing lower to end the period at a $1.639 premium to Henry Hub....