Taste

Institutional investors have not lost their taste for commodities, according to Barclays Capital. While this year saw record commodity investment, new heights could be reached in 2010, the firm said Thursday.

The first taste of cold and snow in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions this past weekend combined with another cold front on Monday in the West to help give natural gas futures bulls some traction as the January contract shot 38.5 cents higher on Monday to close at $4.971.

Due to a little taste of winter-like cold returning to northern market areas and the possibility of early storage refills already getting under way, prices were up at nearly all points Monday.

With several market areas still getting a limited early taste of winter, cash prices managed to eke out moderate gains Thursday at a slight majority of points. But there were almost as many points ranging from flat to down as much as 30-45 cents, although most losses were less than a dime.

With several market areas still getting a limited early taste of winter, cash prices managed to eke out moderate gains Thursday at a slight majority of points. But there were almost as many points ranging from flat to down as much as 30-45 cents, although most losses were less than a dime.

For the third morning in a row natural gas futures gapped higherat the open before continuing upward as traders covered shortpositions in anticipation of Tropical Storm Bret becoming the firsthurricane in the 1999 Atlantic season. But after notching a $3.015high shortly after noon, the September contract was hit with a waveof profit-taking that delivered the spot month back down to settleat $2.938. Estimated volume was healthy, with 99,927 contractschanging hands.

Natural gas futures traders received a taste of both bearish andbullish news Monday, as the spot June contract turned in yetanother in a recent wave of volatile daily trading ranges. Thebears made their presence felt first after June easily fell belowthe double bottom trading formation in the $2.152-16 area toestablish a new low of $2.110. However, strong buying kicked in atthat point, and the June contract rode that momentum to settle theday up 5.5 cents at $2.257/MMBtu.