Fell

West Virginia has more taxes and fees on natural gas production than most of the 18 other gas-producing states included in an analysis prepared for a West Virginia Legislature subcommittee by the Marshall University Center for Business and Economic Research. However, it isn’t clear if taxes are hampering development of the state’s Marcellus Shale, the analysts said.

October natural gas trudged lower Friday as traders see widening differentials auguring further weakness. October fell 6.9 cents to $3.809 and November dropped 5.9 cents to $3.922. October crude oil shed $1.44 to $87.96/bbl.

Reversing course from late last week when nearly all cash market points fell, gains were predominant in most regions on Monday, despite the fact that the tropical storm radar got a lot less crowded over the weekend. Much of the country except for the West saw upticks from a few pennies to about a dime.

September natural gas futures fell Wednesday as traders anticipated the release of inventory additions well above last-year and seasonal norms, but it was not enough to dampen the case for a seasonal advance, analysts pointed out. At the close September had fallen 7.1 cents to $3.922 and October had retreated 7.9 cents to $3.889. October crude oil shed 28 cents to $85.16/bbl.

September natural gas fell Thursday as the market digested a storage report showing additions to inventory above what the market was looking for. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported a build for the week ended Aug. 12 of 50 Bcf while traders were expecting about 5 Bcf less. At the close September had fallen 4.1 cents to $3.892 after trading as low as $3.843 and October had given up 4.4 cents to $3.899. September crude oil followed free-falling financial markets and dropped $5.20 to $82.38/bbl.

Even as Tropical Storm Don churned into the central and western Gulf of Mexico and hot weather forecasts continued for much of the eastern U.S., prices fell in most of the market Thursday. The fact that trading covered flows over the July 30-31 weekend played a part in the overall softness, and the flat performance of expiration-date futures on Wednesday gave no guidance to cash traders.

Noble Corp.’s profit fell 75% in the second quarter, in part because of rig service interruptions in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM), CEO David Williams said Thursday.

Despite predictions of peak temperatures near 100 in New York City generating a $4-plus increase in Transco Zone 6-New York quotes, prices fell in most of the rest of the market Thursday as the current eastern heat wave lost much of its bullish impact.

Noble Corp.’s profit fell 75% in the second quarter, in part because of rig service interruptions in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM), CEO David Williams said Thursday.