Cash

Cash natural gas prices on average fell 4 cents for weekend and Monday deliveries in Friday’s trading. Gains were posted in the Midwest and Midcontinent as lingering cold was expected to keep temperatures below normal. Eastern and New England locations fell as forecasters predicted a warming trend. At the close of futures trading, April had risen 4.7 cents to $3.629 and May was up 4.6 cents to $3.673. April crude oil rose 39 cents to $91.95/bbl.

Cash prices fell 7 cents on average Thursday as traders ignored a powerful East Coast storm and concentrated on getting deals done before the release of government inventory data.

Cash prices continued to romp higher by another 15 cents Tuesday, led by weather-driven strength along the Eastern Seaboard. Large price gains typically seen on constrained New England pipelines such as Algonquin and Iroquois were also seen throughout the Northeast on Transco, Texas Eastern and Tennessee.

Cash gas prices overall on average gained 6 cents Monday, but if the monster gains on Iroquois and Tennessee in the Northeast are factored out, the gains come in at a mere penny. The Midwest, Great Lakes were strong, while eastern points were little changed. Strong eastern power prices helped lend a solid undertone to New York and New England gains.

Cash gas prices fell 8 cents on average Thursday as traders noted a decline in forward-dated contracts and the ongoing sequence of forecast cold weather ended for the moment. Power prices also eased.

Cash natural gas on average added 14 cents Monday as a late-winter storm carrying high winds ripped through the Midwest and Plains, making travel difficult and prompting double-digit gains at virtually all pricing points.

Cash prices overall lurched higher Wednesday as weather forecasts continued to call for bone-chilling winds across major Midwest and eastern market centers. Without the multi-dollar gains posted at a handful of Northeast points, the average national gain was 8 cents, but with those gains factored in, the average rose to 21 cents.

Apache Corp. is taking no prisoners in the Permian Basin nor in the Midcontinent after building output from the combined regions by almost 24% in 2012 from 2011. By themselves, the two regions represented 25% of total global production at 197,000 boe/d.

Newfield Exploration Co. is considering the sale of its international assets, which consist of offshore oil and natural gas developments in Malaysia and China, the company said.