York

Adding to the price erosion that began last Tuesday, natural gasfutures tumbled lower at the New York Mercantile Exchange Monday asunsupportive cash market values met with heavy local selling.However, when a second wave of selling failed to materialize,speculative traders were forced to cover shorts into the closeyesterday, sources said. The August contract finished at $2.144,down 1.9 cents on the day.

The stage was set for expiration day pyrotechnics Monday at theNew York Mercantile Exchange. Bulls were confident they could addto the string of five higher highs and higher lows notched on thedaily charts last week. On the other hand, bears believed theconfluence of mild temperatures and follow-through on the heels ofFridays price erosion would set the tone early yesterday. They wereboth wrong. Except for a late and almost inconsequential bliphigher, the July contract was a model of stability yesterday, wherebuying and selling matched up nearly perfectly. July closed out itstenure as spot month up a meager 0.4 cents to settle at $2.262. TheAugust contract finished up 3.2 at $2.324.

After being hit with a devastating combination of bearish newsFriday afternoon and Monday morning, traders at the New YorkMercantile Exchange had little choice when the market reopened. TheJuly contract took it on the chin, gapping lower on the open beforeposting a 7.1-cent decline to finish at $2.237. The August contractdid not fare any better, slipping 6.9 cents to $2.268. Estimatedvolume was solid with 78,116 contracts changing hands.

Light profit-taking that began in Monday’s Access tradingsession, continued yesterday at the New York Mercantile Exchange.Locals were seen as aggressive sellers, unloading positions aheadof today’s storage report. The July contract finished at $2.393,down 4.9 cents for the day.

“Close, but no cigar,” was one trader’s apt description of theprice action yesterday in the natural gas pit at the New YorkMercantile Exchange. A session that saw the prompt month unable tobreak stubborn resistance near $2.40. After an early dip, the Julycontract spent much of the session near its $2.39 high beforeplummeting lower at the close. July finished at $2.343, down 1.5cents.

“We are standing on the doorstep of some of America’s largestenergy-consuming markets: Boston, New York City, Chicago,Dallas-Fort Worth, San Francisco and Los Angeles. We believe therewill be about a half-dozen national energy providers. SouthernCompany intends to be one of those companies.”

Cautious selling was met with light, scale-down buying pressureat the New York Mercantile Exchange Friday. And when the dust hadcleared and all the orders counted, both bulls and bears couldglean something positive from the session. Bulls were quick topoint to the $2.225 settlement, a 0.7-cent advance for the day.Bears, on the other hand, touted Friday’s lower high and lower lowas an indication the downtrend was still intact. Estimated volumeof 77,538 confirmed the heavy activity in the pit.

Texaco stock closed up a healthy 5 1/16 Friday amid rumors thecompany is a takeover target in the sights of Chevron. Texacoclosed at 67 ¬ on the New York Stock Exchange on volume more thantwice the average. The stock’s 52-week range is 44 9/16 to 65 7/8.Chevron shares closed down 2 15/16 at 94 7/8. The stock’s 52-weekrange is 73 to 104 15/16. A Texaco spokesman could not be reachedat press time, and Chevron declined to comment on the rumor.

Texaco stock closed up a healthy 5 1/16 Friday amid rumors thecompany is a takeover target in the sights of Chevron. Texacoclosed at 67 ¬ on the New York Stock Exchange on volume more thantwice the average. The stock’s 52-week range is 44 9/16 to 65 7/8.Chevron shares closed down 2 15/16 at 94 7/8. The stock’s 52-weekrange is 73 to 104 15/16. A Texaco spokesman could not be reachedat press time, and Chevron declined to comment on the takeoverrumor.