After a nearly 36.0-cent rally over the past three trading sessions, natural gas traders booked profits amid a stable weather outlook and continued soft production. The May Nymex gas futures contract settled Wednesday at $2.222/MMBtu, off 14.4 cents from Tuesday’s close. June futures fell 12.2 cents to $2.395.

At A Glance:

  • Near-term outlook still bearish
  • Soft output seen needing to hold
  • West Coast cash rises on pipe work

Cash prices declined across the majority of U.S. locations, but gains out West lifted NGI’s Spot Gas National Avg. up 2.5 cents to $2.210.

With production holding below 100 Bcf/d and weather models not deviating from a fluctuating weather pattern the remainder of this month, traders sold off positions as the near-term bearish price outlook remained...