Flat pricing dominated the cash market again Thursday, butregion-specific variations also continued. While numbers saw littlechange in the Gulf Coast, Midcontinent/Midwest and Southwest,Northeast deliveries took a dive and Rockies pipes saw gains ofabout a nickel or so. The Rockies and Northeast price movements,though divergent, were based on the same influences: changingweather. The East Coast is entering a warm-up period; meanwhile,recent record-setting warmth in the Rockies was a thing of the pastas a stormy cool front moved through the region toward the Plainsstates.

Declines of a dime or more prevailed in the Northeast and onAppalachia’s CNG. The top drop of more than 20 cents into the mid$2.60s was recorded in Transco’s Zone 6-NYC pool; however, evenwith that large a fall, it was still among the highest-pricedtrading points.

One trader expressed amazement that CNG’s slide of just over adime left it trading little more than a nickel above Henry Hub.

The subtle support of $26-plus crude oil futures didn’t lastlong as the December crude contract gave back nearly all ofWednesday’s 90-cent gain, sliding by 80 cents Thursday to settle at$25.80/bbl.

NOVA’s linepack situation was stabilizing as the pipelinerestored daily imbalance tolerances to the normal +10%/-10% range.

The weekend price picture looks pretty weak, especially in theEast. Both Sonat and Tennessee warned shippers Thursday of possibleweekend OFOs due to the combination of mild weather forecasts,overdeliveries into the system and very limited storage injectionoptions.

A Houston marketer said basis is widening for December, gettingeven more negative at Gulf Coast points than in the Novemberbidweek. He reported December basis of minus 1.5 for TranscoStation 65, minus 8 for ANR-Southeast, minus 3 for TGT Zone SL andminus 4 for Columbia Gulf-onshore. A western trader said she wasgetting basis offers of minus 24 for Rockies pipes in general.

A western LDC joined the growing chorus of utilities saying thatdue to winter term contracts, they do not expect to buy any spotgas for next month.

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