Nominal

Cash natural gas prices shed a dime on average Friday as steady to nominal gains at Rockies points were unable to offset falling quotes at East, Northeast and California points. Traders also cited the normal Friday reluctance to buy ahead of a weekend and weather forecasts indicated little likelihood of East and Northeast cold.

The North America oilfield services market “eroded more than we thought” in 3Q2012, but the spending decline could turn in January, said the research team at Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. (TPH).

January natural gas managed a third straight day of nominal gains Thursday as traders largely discounted storage data that showed an ever increasing surplus with no end to the above-average increases in sight. At the close January had risen 1.4 cent to $3.169 and February had risen 0.8 cent to $3.206. February crude oil added 86 cents to $99.53/bbl.

Natural gas prices were a mixed bag on Tuesday with mild weather and tumbling prices in the Northeast offset by nominal gains in other most other regions as traders grappled with the combination of stronger futures prices and a winter storm lashing the Great Plains.

Natural gas futures posted a nominal gain Thursday following the release of government storage figures showing a greater withdrawal than the market was expecting. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported natural gas inventories fell by 20 Bcf for the week ended Dec. 2, much greater than estimates centered closer to 9 Bcf. At the close January had added 3.6 cents to $3.457, and February had risen by 2.8 cents to $3.486. January crude oil tumbled $2.15 to $98.34/bbl as oil markets elected to follow slumping equity markets. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 199 points to 11,998.

Export of liquefied U.S. natural gas from the Gulf Coast drew another step closer to reality last week as Cheniere Energy Partners LP unit Sabine Pass Liquefaction LLC said it had struck its second sale and purchase contract — with Gas Natural Aprovisionamientos, a unit of Gas Natural Fenosa.

Export of liquefied U.S. natural gas from the Gulf Coast drew another step closer to reality Monday as Cheniere Energy Partners LP unit Sabine Pass Liquefaction LLC said it had struck its second sale and purchase contract — with Gas Natural Aprovisionamientos, a unit of Gas Natural Fenosa.

A contract signed last week for the liquefaction and export of domestically produced natural gas lends further credibility to the shale gas optimism that has swept the energy industry in recent years, and it could quiet skeptics who think the United States isn’t poised to become an exporter of gas to global markets.

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Energy InformationAdministration said on Friday it is expecting the highest averagegas wellhead prices (nominal) in history this year and the highestprices in real (inflation adjusted) terms since 1985.