Points

Weekend prices fell at a large majority of points Friday as March appeared to be living up to its “shoulder month” reputation more than when cold weather lingered into the month’s first week. The bearish storage report from a day before, which spurred a dime drop by April futures, and the weekend decline of industrial load were other factors in softer quotes.

Multi-dollar plunges at several Northeast citygates stood out as most points in other regions were either flat or recorded changes up and down of about a nickel or less Thursday. Although leaving temperatures around freezing or not much higher in its wake, a winter storm was starting to move out of the Northeast, and other areas were seeing a variety of cold to cool conditions that failed to create impressive amounts of heating load. Cash quotes also continued to get no backing from the previous day’s 5.5-cent fall by April futures.

Prices continued to fall modestly at a majority of points Friday, but despite the extra decline of industrial load over a holiday weekend, a number of locations mostly in the Northeast were flat to a little more than 90 cents higher because of a revival of colder temperatures during the weekend and through much of the week. Subfreezing lows predicted to begin Saturday in the Northeast caused regional citygates to record the largest upticks.

Prices fell at a large majority of points Wednesday as North America’s latest siege of frigid weather was expected to be less severe and of shorter duration than the one that proved to be so troublesome a week earlier. Many traders were looking ahead to next week when the forecast calls for above-normal temperatures in much of the eastern two-thirds of the U.S.; moderation will already be under way in many areas by the weekend.

Colder forecasts during the Christmas weekend were in effect for many areas, and although near-term predictions varied, most points were flat to about a dime higher. All of the major declines from about a dime to the $2.65 area occurred in the Northeast, where a major weekend storm had begun departing.

Forecasts of a plunge of arctic cold from Canada into the U.S. Midwest and Northeast failed to prevent a decline of spot prices at most points Tuesday.

After strong gains over the previous two days based on a widespread cold spell, prices began retreating at nearly all points Friday as forecasts indicated a return to more seasonal temperatures in most areas. The normal weekend drop of industrial load was another bearish influence, while the prior-day uptick of 2 cents by December futures had no appreciable impact on the physical market.

North American operators are continuing to shift from conventional natural gas plays “to oil and shales, particularly the gas and condensate plays,” which puts Weatherford International Ltd. in a particularly strong position, CEO Bernard Duroc-Danner said Tuesday.

Feeding off of the new 12-month low recorded in front-month natural gas futures on Friday, the cash market responded on Monday by falling at a vast majority of points across the nation. While most cash averages declined by less than a dime, a couple of gains in the nickel to dime range were sprinkled across the country, especially in the East.