Heating

Cash prices finished the week on a positive note as continuedincremental heating demand and a strong futures market bolsteredprices Friday. Trading was very active from the outset, a Gulftrader told Daily GPI. “There were some undeniable factors pointingto higher cash prices. Overnight gains in Access trading set thetone, then the over the counter market verified the strength,” heexplained. So it came as no surprise when the first cash offerswere a nickel or more above Thursday’s averages. But the marketcould not sustain the price rally and after buyers had filled theirrequirements at around 9:45 CST, seller realized their lowestprices of the day in late morning dealings.

Not forecasts calling for cooling temperatures, nor record lowsset in the nearby heating oil contract could entice the natural gasfutures market to break out of its month long trading rangeTuesday, as many traders decided instead to play it safe and waitfor a more clearly defined price signal. The March contract drifted1.2 cents lower to settle at $1.795 after being limited to a narrow5-cent trading range.

Flatness and mild softness dominated the late-April cash marketMonday. Enough heating load was being generated in the Northeastand Midwest to keep citygates and a number of field pointsessentially unchanged from Friday. Most of the downticks of 2-5cents again occurred in the West, where mild temperatures wereprevailing.