In a last ditch effort to keep prices above the longterm trendline, bulls in the gas pit at Nymex battled back yesterday,propelling April prices higher throughout the morning hours. As itturns out, that buying pressure would not be tested, and from thatpoint forward prices chopped sideways throughout the afternoon.With that, the April 2001 contract concluded its first session asprompt month with a neat, 18.2-cent gain to finish at $5.279.

Traders were quick to point to a combination of winter weatherand stronger cash market prices as a reason for the futuresincreases. While a winter storm was pushing snow across the centerof the country into the Mid-Atlantic yesterday, arctic air wasdescending out of Canada into the northern plains. Add to that theinfluence of higher cash-out prices that forced traders to coverany physical shorts and you had a recipe for higher futures pricesyesterday, sources agreed.

Looking ahead, traders will be focused on fresh storage data tobe released by the American Gas Association this afternoon.Expectations circulating yesterday were calling for a netwithdrawal anywhere from a relatively svelte 80 Bcf pull to as muchas a 110 Bcf takeaway. On the surface, a drawdown of that magnitudewould be bullish, as it would likely exceed both last week’s 81 Bcfpull and last year’s 74 Bcf figure. The five-year averagewithdrawal for this period is 82 Bcf, according to the AGA.

It deserves mention that next Wednesday’s storage report, whilestill more than a week away, could produce some fireworks if themarket decides — as it often does — to immediately look pastthe actual data this afternoon. If that is the case, traders willglean that the current spat of cold weather is drawing heavily onstorage this week, resulting in a withdrawal figure next Wednesdaywhich could be more than double the 37 Bcf decrease seen duringthis week last year.

©Copyright 2001 Intelligence Press Inc. All rights reserved. Thepreceding news report may not be republished or redistributed, inwhole or in part, in any form, without prior written consent ofIntelligence Press, Inc.