Languid

Despite languid cash market prices and plentiful supply heading forward, natural gas futures exploded higher Friday as traders covered shorts and squared their books ahead of the four-day holiday weekend (some cash traders admitted having to work a half-day Monday, but the futures market will remain closed until 7 p.m. EST Christmas Day for Access trading and until 10 a.m. Wednesday for regular pit trading). By virtue of its 20.9-cent rally and $2.895 closing price, the January contract broke to new three-week highs Friday, and moved above the February contract for the first time since Nov. 2. Heavy trading activity punctuated the move, with 116,361 in estimated volume.