Physical gas prices overall traded about 5 cents lower Thursday, but Rocky Mountain producers and marketers got hit with a double whammy of a force majeure on a major pipeline hauling gas to California and a plunge in hydro-derived electricity prices. Eastern and Gulf points endured nominal losses.
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Little Chance Seen of Reversing Widespread Drops
Virtually all points fell Thursday as they succumbed to a triple whammy of bearish threats: further increases in storage inventories, futures weakness and mild weather for mid-winter that refuses to go away and allow normal cold conditions to take hold.
Traders Warming Up For Options Expiry, EIA Report; December Gains
December natural gas settled modestly higher Tuesday as traders prepared for a double whammy in the form of a government inventory report and options expiration Wednesday. In addition, December futures expire Monday following an extended holiday period. At the end of the day December had added 1.6 cents to $3.415 and January had tacked on 0.3 cent to $3.561. January crude oil added $1.09 to $98.01.
Storage Stats, Weak Commodities Tug June to Double-Digit Loss
June natural gas futures fell hard Thursday as a double whammy of a moderately negative inventory report combined with a broad market downdraft in equities and other commodity markets to pummel prices. At the close June had fallen 31.6 cents to $4.261 and July was similarly lower by 31.3 cents to $4.331.
Pipelines: Supply-Demand Mismatch Part of Southwest Shutoffs
Severe weather conditions early this month caused a double whammy for the two interstate natural gas pipelines serving the Southwest, and the result was curtailments by some of the distribution utilities, particularly in New Mexico, representatives from Transwestern and El Paso Natural Gas pipeline units told a U.S. Senate energy committee informational hearing Monday in Albuquerque, NM.
Despite Double Whammy of Bullish Storage News, Futures Slip Lower
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.
Quiet Trade on Friday Could be Sign of Things to Come
Despite the bullish double whammy of rising crude prices and the development of a tropical wave in the Atlantic, natural gas futures remained extremely quiet Friday, as traders elected to wait until a clearer fundamental and technical picture develops. With that the November contract spent a second straight day moving sideways, slipping 0.9 cents at the close to finish at $2.244. November crude oil, meanwhile, tracked 69 cents higher to close at $23.43.