After large swings the past three weeks, natural gas forward prices took a breather as moderate weather settled over the United States in between bouts of colder temperatures. January prices fell only 4.0 cents on average from Dec. 17-23, as did the balance of winter (January-March), according to NGI’s Forward Look. The rest of the forward curve posted smaller losses.

The majority of U.S. markets slipped only a few cents across the curve, but the Northeast posted more dramatic declines as temperatures climbed following the mega snowstorm that hit the East Coast between Dec. 16 and 18.

Lower liquidity during the Christmas week also likely factored into the muted price action. More than 160,000 January Nymex futures contracts traded on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange on Dec. 17,...