Rebounded

After etching a dramatic six-day, one-dollar price slide, the natural gas futures market rebounded modestly Tuesday as bargain buying entered the fray. With short-range weather forecasts unchanged and fresh storage data still a day out, market watchers agreed that the uptick was due to the market’s perception that sub-$5.00 might be a good purchase should this winter turn out anything like last winter.

Natural gas futures rebounded cautiously Thursday after dropping below the $6.00 mark early in the session on the news that a larger-than-expected 90 Bcf was injected into underground storage facilities last week. The June contract finished at $6.035, down 16.3 cents for the session and 8.5 cents off its $5.95 low.

Despite a second-straight day of lower cash market prices, natural gas futures rebounded Tuesday as local traders hitched a ride on the backs of fund and speculative buyers. With that the May contract advanced 6.5 cents to close at $5.125. In doing so, May has finished in the $5.10s in five of its last eight trading sessions. At 50,568, estimated volume was again weak, proving that the market is stuck in a bit of trading rut.

In what could be the most bullish 2-cent decline in recent memory, natural gas futures rebounded from early lows Wednesday as buyers continued to bet heavily on storage and weather holding the market up. After failing to extend down to a key downside objective at $6.70, the April contract rallied in the afternoon in light, pre-storage report short-covering. It closed at $7.021, down 2 cents on the day, but more than 27 cents above its morning low of $6.75.

El Paso Corp. shares rebounded 22% on Friday to $4.19 after bottoming out at Thursday’s low of $3.33. On Wednesday, it was in the unenviable position of being the most heavily traded common stock on the New York Stock Exchange because investors were dumping shares in buckets following the announcement that CEO William Wise would step down as chairman at the end of the year and hand over his title of CEO as soon as the board could find a replacement.

Buoyed by crude oil and by falling mercury readings in the Northeast, natural gas futures rebounded sharply Tuesday morning as fund traders added to their long positions. However, the day’s advance was tempered slightly when afternoon as light selling entered the fray and deposited the prompt contract back below the psychologically important $6.00 mark. By virtue of its 12.5-cent advance and $5.977 close, the March contract remains in bulls hands. At 99,244 estimated volume was heavy and served to punctuate the price advance.

Tengasco Inc. shares were down 11% last Tuesday but rebounded 9% on Wednesday by noon to $1.31 after the company discounted a class action lawsuit brought against it on Monday. Tengasco said the lawsuit was initiated by common stock short-sellers, who profit when share prices decline.

After falling during the regular session Wednesday, natural gas futures rebounded to erase that loss in the late afternoon as traders reacted to the news of a larger-than-expected 49 Bcf storage withdrawal.

After spending less than 5 minutes below $4.00 last Friday, natural gas futures rebounded convincingly yesterday as traders were once again hit with another bullish weather forecast to start the week. The resultant buying pressed prices higher throughout the trading session. A round of locally-led short-covering put a bow on it for bulls, as the November contract rallied at the close to settle at $4.176 on its penultimate trading day, up 14.8 cents from Friday and just a few ticks off its $4.19 high Monday. Considering it was the day before expiration, trading was light as just 84,638 contracts changed hands.