Spiking

After spiking to a new high for the week in the moments following the release of a larger-than-anticipated 85 Bcf storage withdrawal, the natural gas futures market went lower in the late morning and afternoon Thursday as sellers liquidated positions ahead of an expected weekend weather warm-up. April crested at $5.62 at 11:15, up 34 cents from Wednesday’s settle, but then tumbled back down to $5.17 by the middle of the afternoon. It closed at $5.306, up 2.8 cents for the session.

With natural gas prices currently spiking, CenterPoint Energy Minnegasco (CEM) informed its residential gas customers that the March natural gas billing rate is going to be much higher than it was for February.

After spiking to a new, all-time high Tuesday, natural gas futures reversed lower Wednesday as spread- and options-related selling pressured March futures lower on their expiration day. March ended its tenure as prompt month at $9.133, down 44.4 cents for the session and $2.766 off its $11.899 high notched just 30 hours prior.

After spiking higher moments after the release of fresh storage data showing a 247 Bcf withdrawal last week, natural gas futures slumped late Thursday morning as traders alleviated overbought conditions. Modest upticks were seen in the afternoon as bargain buying entered the fray. And though it was down 4.6 cents to $5.583 on its first day as prompt contract at Nymex, March was able to notch a higher high and a higher low for the session, giving some traders hope that another rally — while not likely — is possible.

After spiking higher on the news that 123 Bcf was pulled from storage during the previous week, natural gas futures snapped back to unchanged as traders tried to get a better read on bullish weather forecasts circulating the market. After trading just above unchanged from Thursday’s close for much of Friday’s session, the February contract was boosted at the closing bell by a round of short-covering. It closed at $5.344, up 9.3 cents for the session, but 7.6 cents below its high for the day.

After spiking to a new 15-month high shortly after the opening bell, natural gas futures cascaded lower throughout the session Tuesday as traders took profits on forecasts showing Hurricane Lili may not be as “well-organized” a storm as once thought. Plumbing down to the psychologically important $4.00 level near the close, the November contract was hit hardest by the selling. It finished at $4.067, down 7.1 cents for the session.

An official with North America’s largest independent gas production company, EnCana Corp., predicted last week that the current gas storage surplus would be depleted before the end of the winter and that gas prices would rise above $4/MMBtu from $3.25 currently (Henry Hub cash) but would not soar to the levels seen two winters ago.

With prices spiking on Monday and then crashing lower Tuesday and Wednesday, this week has been a microcosm of the frenetic trading activity of the past four months, leaving traders yearning for the holiday weekend and the calming effect they hope will come with the shoulder months of September and October. After gapping lower at the opening bell Wednesday, the September contract cascaded lower throughout the session to finish at $3.288, down 19.5 cents for the session, but up 39.8 cents over the course of its month-long tenure as prompt contract. For an expiration day, volume in the gas pit was light, with an estimated 126,596 contracts changing hands.

Buoyed by hot weather and spiking Northeast physical prices, natural gas futures ended higher Tuesday, as commercial traders continued to favor the long side of the market. After touching the $3.00 mark Tuesday afternoon for the first time since Aug. 1, the September contract ebbed slightly to close at $2.975, a 1-cent increase for the session. With 102,854 contracts changing hands, Tuesday’s heavy volume in the gas pit lent credibility to the up-move.