Factored

Physical natural gas prices fell about 2 cents Wednesday as traders finished up bidweek futures trading and factored in volatile near-term weather forecasts. Isolated strength was noted at some Northeast points, but for the most part the decline was widespread with all points flat or in the loss column. At the close of futures trading the expired April contract had lost 1.7 cents to $2.191 and May had eased 1.2 cents to $2.282. May crude oil dropped $1.92 to $105.41/bbl.

February natural gas trekked below $3 again in active trading Thursday as traders factored in government storage data that showed a continued widening in the storage surplus. At the close February had given up 11.6 cents to$2.980 and March had retreated 11.0 cents to$3.017. February crude oil slipped $1.41 to $101.81/bbl.

December natural gas posted a new low Friday as analysts factored in a continued weak technical picture along with a weather outlook that fails to even hint at seasonally cool temperatures. The number of rigs drilling for gas, however, posted a steep decline. December fell 6.5 cents to $3.584 and January skidded 5.1 cents to $3.696. December crude oil continued its march higher, adding $1.21 to $98.99/bbl.

November futures expired on a weak note Thursday as traders factored in a greater-than-expected increase in storage inventories. The report by the Energy Information Administration showed an increase of 92 Bcf, about 7 Bcf greater than what traders were looking for. At the end of trading November had shed 6.6 cents to $3.524 and December had lost 1.1 cents to $3.764. December crude followed an ebullient equity market higher and gained a stout $3.76 to $93.96/bbl.

November natural gas staged a furious end-of-week rally Friday as traders factored in cooler weather and holders of short positions may have figured that the outlook couldn’t get much better and decided to cover. November jumped 17.2 cents to $3.703 and December rose 14.6 cents to $3.960. November crude oil surged $2.57 to $86.42/bbl.

September futures limped to a weak expiration Monday as traders factored in natural gas’ strong seasonality and tendency to reach a low at this time of the year. At the close September had fallen 7.4 cents to $3.857 and October skidded 8.2 cents to $3.830. October crude oil added $1.90 to $87.27/bbl.

September natural gas retreated Tuesday as traders factored in a mild change in the temperature outlook. At the close September had fallen 3.3 cents to $4.155 and October had eased 3.4 cents to $4.156. September crude oil fell $1.10 to $93.79/bbl.

July natural gas posted a double-digit gain as traders factored in a warmer temperature forecast and the emergence of tropical activity in the central Caribbean. At the end of the day July rose 12.0 cents to $4.827 and August gained 11.8 cents to $4.857. July crude oil tumbled $1.21 to $99.01/bbl.

July natural gas futures scored double-digit gains Thursday as traders factored in new government storage data that was well below expectations. At the close of trading July had gained a stout 16.5 cents to $4.794 and August was higher by 15.4 cents to $4.821. July crude oil rose 11 cents to $100.40/bbl.