Mercantile

August natural gas futures expired on a positive note Friday, gaining 16.7 cents to settle at $6.110 in active trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Traders cited short-covering as the dominant factor leading to the rise, but in the larger scope they noted that fundamental factors continued to favor the bears. Uninspired temperature and tropical forecasts could lead to a repeat of last year’s price collapse.

Just days ahead of the shareholder vote on the combination of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) and the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT), the companies said Friday that they have revised the terms of their definitive merger agreement to increase the exchange ratio from 0.350 to 0.375 shares of CME Holdings common stock for each share of CBOT Holdings common stock.

Just days ahead of the shareholder vote on the combination of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) and the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT), the companies said Friday that they have revised the terms of their definitive merger agreement to increase the exchange ratio from 0.350 to 0.375 shares of CME Holdings common stock for each share of CBOT Holdings common stock.

With the crucial vote less than a week away, the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) and IntercontinentalExchange (ICE) continue to turn up the intensity in their respective pursuits of acquiring and merging with the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT). On Tuesday, ICE resubmitted its merger proposal to CBOT, while CME touted the approval of its bid by additional advisory firms.

A material increase in North American drilling activity may not be achieved until New York Mercantile Exchange (Nymex) natural gas futures prices approach $9/MMBtu, but high storage levels, increasing liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports and a lack of extreme heat could, in fact, put the chill on prices, energy analysts said in separate reports last week.

As the July 9 Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) shareholder and member vote on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange’s (CME) merger offer approaches, Atlanta-based IntercontinentaExchange (ICE) continues to lobby that its CBOT offer is “superior” on all fronts.

A material increase in North American drilling activity may not be achieved until New York Mercantile Exchange (Nymex) natural gas futures prices approach $9/MMBtu, but high storage levels, increasing liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports and a lack of extreme heat could, in fact, put the chill on prices, energy analysts said in separate reports Monday.

Two days after IntercontinentalExchange (ICE) resubmitted an enhanced acquisition bid for the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT), the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) last Thursday added value to its own bid for the 159-year-old global derivative exchange. As a result, CBOT’s board of directors announced that ICE’s new bid was not superior to the just revised CME offer. The real test will come July 9 when CBOT’s members and shareholders will get to vote on the proposed merger with CME.

Two days after IntercontinentalExchange (ICE) resubmitted an enhanced acquisition bid for the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT), the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) on Thursday added value to its own bid for the 159-year-old global derivative exchange. As a result, CBOT’s board of directors announced that ICE’s new bid was not superior to the just revised CME offer. The real test will come July 9 when CBOT’s members and shareholders will get to vote on the proposed merger with CME.