Prompt-month natural gas futures on the New York Mercantile Exchange (Nymex) tested key resistance but failed to push beyond the $1.906/MMBtu high early last week. 

The front-month contract was taking another stab at the upside on Monday, gaining 5.5 cents by midday to $1.840 from a $1.785 settlement ahead of the weekend.

“May has done a nice job holding onto its gains after gapping above its short-term down trendline on March 27, but the contract looks a bit overheated at the moment,” according to NGI’s Pat Rau, director of strategy & research. 

Looking at charts that measure overbought or oversold conditions, Rau said, “Slow stochastics are squarely in overbought territory, and the May contract has been firmly encased within its 20-day Bollinger Band since...