Moderate

Moderate softness permeated the cash market Wednesday as the screen turned in a negative performance and weather-related load remained stagnant in the East while fading a bit in the West. Small declines of about a nickel or less (with occasional flatness) were recorded at most points, but a cooldown from recent hot weather generated losses of 10-25 cents or so in much of the West (although that region also had a few points slightly to either side of flat).

Moderate softness continued to dominate most of the April swing market on its penultimate day of trading Monday. Cold fronts expected in the Mid-Atlantic, Northeast and Midwest, along with thunderstorms and mountain snows in the Northwest, failed to provide the support needed to avert further price falls at most points.

With “moderate” improvement in its liquidity and a lengthened debt repayment plan, Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services (S&P) on Wednesday assigned a “BB” rating to CMS Energy Corp.’s new $925 million credit facilities.

Big rebounds in the vicinity of a dollar at San Juan/Rockies points and moderate declines in the Northeast were the primary diversions Monday from overall flatness in the rest of the cash market, in which most points were less than a nickel up or down from unchanged.

Appropriately for the first full day of spring, moderate springtime weather dominated both Friday’s weather picture and the weekend outlook. That was reflected in cash prices ranging from flat to down nearly 30 cents. Declines in the middle (a dime to 20 cents) were in the majority.

In reaction to forecasts calling for moderating temperatures and in anticipation of Thursday’s release of fresh storage data, natural gas futures slumped Wednesday amid light long liquidation. And although the March contract finished with a 11.8-cent decline for the session to close at $5.644, it remains in an uptrend on the daily chart. Estimated volume was heavy, with an estimated 101,308 contracts changing hands.

A bit of strength in the Rockies and New England citygates was more than offset by flat to mostly moderate year-end declines in other markets Monday. Although some of the softer points saw double-digit dips, a majority fell by less than a dime.

Generally moderate softness dominated the weekend market. With pockets of modest gains tucked in here and there, a large majority of points ranged from flat to down about 15 cents Friday, although most of the losses were confined to single digits. However, San Juan Basin numbers stood out with a plunge of about 35 cents.

Once again a previous-afternoon screen uprising worked its magic on next-day cash prices. Friday quotes for weekend flow mostly ranged from approximately flat to nearly a quarter higher. A majority of the gains were relatively modest at around a dime or less.