Shoulder season doldrums appeared to be setting in for natural gas futures traders Tuesday, though the April contract was flashing last-minute fireworks on its final day. Meanwhile, cash trading continued to reflect swollen storage levels and underwhelming springtime temperatures.

Here’s the latest:

  • April Nymex contract at $1.563/MMBtu as of 2:20 p.m. ET, off 5.2 cents; May down 1.3 cents to $1.776

Earlier in the day, the April Nymex contract had appeared to be headed for an uneventful send-off as the prompt month before prices started to dip late in the session. “Last-day trading is often volatile as the number of physical players dwindles and volume decreases, with risks in both directions,” EBW Analytics Group analyst Eli Rubin said.

  • Another month of historically...