Consecutive

Coming off Monday’s 22.2-cent decline in September natural gas futures, traders on Tuesday tested the upside a second consecutive day with similar results. After reaching a high of $4.825, the front-month contract backed off once again, closing the regular session at $4.639, down 6.2 cents from Monday’s finish.

Sticking to a fairly tight trading range for a second consecutive session, August natural gas futures on Tuesday traded between $4.334 and $4.487 before closing the day at $4.354, down 3.4 cents from Monday’s close.

While sizzling temperatures sometimes north of 100 degrees cooked much of the East for a third consecutive day on Wednesday, the bullish news seemed to be lost on natural gas futures traders as August futures retreated for much of the day.

Natural gas futures on Friday declined for the fourth consecutive session as the June contract shaved another 7.1 cents to $4.035. For the week the prompt-month contract dropped 27.7 cents, or 6% of its value.

Traders pushed natural gas futures higher for a second consecutive session as the May contract added 3.9 cents to close at $4.199. Despite the rise, some market watchers are not ready to say that the seasonal advance has begun just yet.

Traders pushed natural gas futures higher for a second consecutive session as the May contract added 3.9 cents to close at $4.199. Despite the rise, some market watchers are not ready to say that the seasonal advance has begun just yet.

The Texas Petro Index (TPI) rose for the second consecutive month to 191.6, following a 14-month string of declines, said the Texas Alliance of Energy Producers. TPI rose from 188.2 in December to 189.1 in January to the latest TPI of 191.6 in February. However, the index remains 27.5% below its level of 264.4 a year ago.

The recent proliferation of shale and tight sands natural gas development has boosted U.S. natural gas reserves for the eleventh consecutive year to 245 Tcf — the highest level in more than 35 years, according to American Gas Association’s (AGA) year-end 2009 data. “Something is obviously positive in the domestic reserves and production story,” the association said.

Natural gas futures dropped a second consecutive day on Wednesday but some veteran market watchers remained unimpressed, noting that they believe the near-term bottom to the market at $3.810 was recorded last Thursday.