Rally

Last week’s overall price rally from Tuesday onward came to an end Friday as heat levels in the southern U.S. were expected to start retreating in some areas Saturday. The market also felt downward pressure from Thursday’s futures drop of 12.2 cents and the decline of industrial load that accompanies a weekend flow period.

Continuing to rally against allegedly unjust practices by Nicor Gas, the Citizens Utility Board (CUB) claims that the utility owes customers $143.3 million in refunds, or about $75 for the average customer, as a result of a complicated scheme the company allegedly embarked on to defraud consumers at a time when they were paying record high gas prices.

Continuing to rally against allegedly unjust practices by Nicor Gas, the Citizens Utility Board (CUB) claims that the utility owes customers $143.3 million in refunds, or about $75 for the average customer, as a result of a complicated scheme the company allegedly embarked on to defraud consumers at a time when they were paying record high gas prices.

Tuesday’s overall rally continued at most points Wednesday, but there were more instances of flat to backsliding numbers. Significant cooling load remained on the light side outside the South and much of the West, but the cash market did derive support from a 13.8-cent screen gain the day before.

The management-led buyout of Kinder Morgan Inc. (KMI) sparked a rally in the company’s shares (see NGI, June 5). Last week it launched a fusillade of class-action lawsuits that claim shareholders would be stiffed by the $100/share offer, “a grossly inadequate and unfair price.”

The management-led buyout of Kinder Morgan Inc. (KMI) sparked a rally in the company’s shares last week (see Daily GPI, May 31). This week it has launched a fusillade of class-action lawsuits that claim shareholders would be stiffed by the $100/share offer, “a grossly inadequate and unfair price.”

A prior-day screen rally and predictions of daily highs in the 80s and 90s Thursday across most of the southern half of the U.S. propelled the cash market to further gains at virtually all points Wednesday. In many instances Wednesday’s upticks were close to a repeat of those that came a day earlier.

Coming off of a couple of hectic trading weeks that saw prompt-month natural gas rally significantly in a short stretch of time only to sink just as quickly, June natural gas futures on Monday traded within a $6.570 to $6.800 range before closing at $6.695, up 14 cents on the day. Monday’s close higher halted a seven-day streak of lower settlements.

As a couple of sources had expected Friday, that day’s record-setting action in crude oil futures paved the way for a general cash gas rally Monday, even though the natural gas screen had fallen more than 8 cents going into the weekend. The return of industrial load from a weekend slump, moderately cooler weather in northern market areas to start the week and continued storage injection demand also played a part in Monday’s overall bullishness.