PG&E Energy Trading-Gas Corp. has named Al Pollard to thepost of Midwest basis trader with responsibility for managing theMidwest desk’s basis risk, reporting to Michael L. Axton, directorof gas trading, Midwest. Pollard joins PG&E Energy Trading fromEnron where he has held trading positions in natural gas and powersince 1995.
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Articles from Trader
Technical Short-Covering Sends Futures Flying
Led by what one New York local trader called “massive shortcovering,” the futures market erupted 27.1 cents higher yesterdayin a rally that left many market participants incredulous. Comingon the heels of fresh storage data and subsequent gains in Accesstrading Wednesday, the October contract gapped higher at the openyesterday and never looked back, finishing at $2.697.
Commercials Have a Lot to Learn From Speculators
Even the most seasoned commercial gas futures trader is no matchfor the speculator these days. These little known futures playerswith no physical presence in the market have shown a real knack fortriggering major market moves and making big profits. They have agreat track record of buying futures at the market lows and sellingat the highs, while the commercial traders historically havestumbled into their buys near the top of price increases andmistakenly sold near the bottoms – “exactly the opposite way totrade if you want to make any money,” noted Susannah Hardesty ofEnergy Research and Trading Inc.
Commercials Have a Lot to Learn from Speculators
Even the most seasoned commercial gas futures trader is no matchfor the speculator these days. These little known futures playerswith no physical presence in the market have shown a real knack fortriggering major market moves and making big profits. They have agreat track record of buying futures at the market lows and sellingat the highs, while the commercial traders historically havestumbled into their buys near the top of price increases andmistakenly sold near the bottoms – “exactly the opposite way totrade if you want to make any money,” noted Susannah Hardesty ofEnergy Research and Trading Inc.
Futures Continue to Plod Toward $2.00
Expiration day at Nymex has been a bull-trader’s worst nightmarerecently because the last several contracts have been ushered offthe board amid a tempest of late selling activity. Septemberslipped 9 cents on its last trading day to cap off a 27.5 centprice decline for the week. Likewise, October and Novemberplummeted 15 cents and 13.6 cents to settle to either side of $2.00at final settlement. And although December’s fate is far fromsealed, Monday’s 6.6-cent losses and $2.097 penultimate settlementprompted traders to wonder if the market might be in for anotherround of expiration-day losses today.
Foundering Futures Close Out July Trading
The futures market concluded what one trader described as a”tumultuous trading week” by slipping for the fifth straight day,leaving futures at their lowest level since March 1997. There was alittle something for everyone in the market last week: speculativeselling, a bullish storage report, and even a little hurricanehype. The only thing missing from trading last week was a dayregistering a gain. That left even the most bullish of tradersscratching their horns wondering when the market will reverse itsdowntrend. The September contract closed at $1.844 on Friday, down6.2 cents. Friday’s With that, the market concluded the month ofJuly. A month that saw major declines in both cash and futuresmarkets eroding the September contract nearly 30 percent of itsJuly 1 value.
Early May Price Rally Falters
May cash prices made a stab at climbing a little higherWednesday, and indeed, one trader said he was “still struggling” tobuy Sonat gas with offers in the low $2.30s. But other sources,while agreeing there was an early push for higher prices, said thenumbers were starting to soften again in the afternoon. “Everybodywent to lunch and then things fell apart,” as a marketer put it.