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Shaking off Tuesday’s price slide, the natural gas futures market on Wednesday moved back to within striking distance of last week’s peak as traders were more impressed with the price gyrations in crude oil futures than the somewhat bearish short-term outlook in natural gas.

Cash prices began what could be an extended period of softening through the end of May with across the board declines Tuesday that were fairly substantial in ranging from a little less than a dime to nearly a quarter. Most of the larger losses were recorded in the West.

Following its test of the $6 resistance on Monday, May natural gas futures finished the week on a four-day slide lower, closing 12.4 cents down on Friday at $5.610. Some analysts looked to the country’s current weather pattern, as well as the storage situation, for answers, taking into account Thursday’s slightly bearish EIA storage report.

Nicor Inc.’s net income slipped 18% for the year and 11% for the fourth quarter of 2003 in part because of lower distribution results and the adoption of an accounting change on wholesale gas marketing partially offset by higher equity investment income and improved operating results in the company’s shipping segment and other energy ventures businesses. Earnings per diluted share were down 17% for the year to $2.38 and were down 11% to 79 cents for the fourth quarter.

Following Thursday’s 17-cent price slide, the natural gas futures market was quiet Friday as traders elected to play it safe ahead of the weekend. Bears scored early Friday by carving out a new nine-month low. However, short-covering ensued and succeeded in recouping the day’s losses. The October contract was held to a tight 9.5-cent range Friday, all of which was etched in the first 40 minutes of trading. It closed at $4.483, up a modest 1.2 cents for the session.

The downhill price path got steeper for nearly all points Wednesday except for a few in the West. Traders continued to dwell on the relative brevity of a heat wave this week in northern market areas and their expectations of another 100 Bcf-plus storage refill in Thursday morning’s report by the Energy Information Administration.

Aquila shares slipped 5% on Friday to $2.69 after UBS Warburg analyst Ronald J. Barone lowered his rating on the company to “Reduce 1” from “Neutral 2.” Barone warned investors that the company has sacrificed its future earnings potential despite its efforts to avoid a liquidity crisis so far this year through asset sales, debt refinancings and exiting the energy trading business.

Aquila shares slipped 5% on Friday to $2.69 after UBS Warburg analyst Ronald J. Barone lowered his rating on the company to “Reduce 1” from “Neutral 2.” Barone warned investors that the company has sacrificed its future earnings potential despite its efforts to avoid a liquidity crisis so far this year through asset sales, debt refinancings and exiting the energy trading business.

Most of the cash market emerged from the Labor Day weekend hiatus to discover prices ranging from flat to a little more than a dime higher Tuesday, but the modest firmness was not expected to last after the energy futures complex took a dive.