Cent

In what was probably the most bullish 5-cent decline in recent memory, natural gas futures shuffled lower Thursday in a lackluster trading session. At the closing bell, May was 4.7 cents weaker at $5.101.

Following Wednesday’s 50-cent plus sell-off, natural gas futuresfound at least a temporary bottom yesterday as traders got a headstart covering shorts before the holiday weekend. Gains were almostuniform across the board as buyers spread buying across all of thecontracts. The 12-month strip advanced 6.7 cents to close at $5.579and the March contract finished 7.6 cents stronger at $5.594.

Fueled by moderating weather forecasts and following Monday’s21-cent decline, natural gas futures tumbled lower in a classicexpiration-day long liquidation Tuesday, as traders rolled theirprompt month positions into back months. After a back-breakingsell-off in the last five minutes of trading Monday, the Decembercontract gapped lower at the open and tumbled 35.2 cents to itsfinal resting place at $6.016 yesterday.

In light of last Thursday’s 47-cent downward futures correctionand new winter forecasts by the National Weather Service,PaineWebber may have jumped the gun a bit in raising its Henry Hubprice projections late last week by about 15 cents for this yearand next to $3.90 and $3.95, respectively. But the investment firmalready was playing catch-up to Salomon Smith Barney (SSB) and therest of the bullish bunch on Wall Street.

In light of yesterday’s 47-cent downward futures correction,PaineWebber may have jumped the gun a bit in raising its Henry Hubprice projections yesterday by about 15 cents for this year andnext to $3.90 and $3.95, respectively. But the investment firmalready is playing catch-up to Salomon Smith Barney (SSB) and therest of the bullish bunch on Wall Street.

After trading within a wide, 58-cent trading range over the past10 trading days, November futures could barely eke out a nickelrange during the regular open-outcry session Tuesday, as traderselected to remain mostly on the sidelines ahead of fresh weatherand storage news expected this afternoon. The prompt month finisheddown 1.6 cents at $5.134 in a session that saw a scant 48,674contracts change hands.

Bolstered by follow-through buying on the heels of Monday’s14.5-cent rally, natural gas prices pressed higher early yesterdayonly to tumble back to near unchanged. At the closing bell, Junefutures were up a scant 1.3 cents at $3.183.

Natural gas futures seesawed to either side of unchanged only tofinish just a fraction of a cent higher yesterday as a late roundof fund buying retraced losses stemming from commercial and localselling earlier in the session.

Following a 4-day, 20-cent price rally, bulls in the natural gaspit cooled their heels yesterday as traders took profits amid ahost of negative short-term technical factors. After peaking forthe day shortly after 11:00 A.M. (CST) at $3.165, selling hit themarket in two distinct waves. It was the second thrust that pushedMay below key support at $3.10 to settle at $3.098, down 6 centsfor the session.