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With the natural gas futures market resembling a game of limbo over the past few sessions, some market watchers are now asking “How low can you go.” Continuing the sloping trend from last week, December natural gas futures shed another 35.4 cents to settle at $7.60.

Following up on announced plans to search for strategic alternatives, Magnum Hunter Resources Inc. said Monday it has hired Deutsche Bank Securities and Merrill Lynch & Co. as financial advisers. Founding CEO Gary Evans announced his retirement last week, and said the next management team would take the company to a new level (see Daily GPI, Oct. 8).

Resigned to the fact that crude was hogging the spotlight Wednesday, September natural gas futures puttered around within an 11-cent range ahead of their expiration Friday.

After a few roller-coaster ups and downs during morning trading, the July natural gas futures contract spent the afternoon on a steady decline, closing down 9.2 cents at $6.115. Notching its fifth consecutive down day, the prompt month once again approached the psychological $6 level as it reached a low on the day of $6.095.

Continuing its sell-off from last week in search of support, the July natural gas futures contract came close to breaching the $6 level in early afternoon trading before closing at $6.207, down 5.4 cents on the day.

Making Monday the fifth consecutive day to close lower, the May natural gas futures contract settled at $5.509, down 10.1 cents after trading in a range from $5.50 to $5.70. The week started on uncharacteristically heavy volume as 85,318 contracts changed hands.

Taking its cue from the crude oil pit on the New York Mercantile Exchange, the May natural gas futures contract on Wednesday looked to further test support, dropping another 4.4 cents to close at $5.744. It was the second straight day of losses for gas and oil futures.

Two affiliates of Kerr-McGee Corp. have acquired 100% interest in nine oil and gas licenses offshore the Bahamas. The licenses, located in the Blake Plateau basin about 100 miles north of Freeport, Grand Bahamas Island, cover 6.5 million acres in water depths ranging from 650 feet to more than 7,000 feet.

Two affiliates of Kerr-McGee Corp. have acquired 100% interest in nine oil and gas licenses offshore the Bahamas. The licenses, located in the Blake Plateau basin about 100 miles north of Freeport, Grand Bahamas Island, cover 6.5 million acres in water depths ranging from 650 feet to more than 7,000 feet.