Highlights of the Market Watch feature on OGJ Online. Dates are when items appeared online. Subscribers can retrieve full articles online via keyword search.
Oct. 26
Energy futures prices fell with profit-taking Monday from the recent market run-up, and the Norwegian government intervened to force arbitration of a 4-month strike by offshore rig workers.
The December contract for benchmark US light, sweet crudes fell to $54.54/bbl, down by 63¢ for the day, after trading at $54.20-55.67/bbl Monday on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The January position lost 52¢ to $54.17/bbl. On the US spot market, West Texas Intermediate at Cushing, Okla., gained 6¢ to $55.23/bbl. Gasoline for November delivery dropped 4.01¢ to $1.40/gal. Heating oil for the same month lost 2.91¢ to $1.57/gal. The soon-to-expire November natural gas contract plunged by 21.5¢ to $7.89/Mcf, "pressured by milder weather forecasts this week, profit-taking after last week's rally, and lower crude prices, despite a firmer physical market," said analysts at Enerfax Daily.
Oct. 27
Energy futures prices jumped higher in a surprise turnaround Tuesday, with natural gas soaring to a 20-month high on NYMEX. Traders kept bidding up prices, although analysts reported no change in market fundamentals.
The November natural gas contract shot up by 51.2¢ to $8.40/Mcf. "The shorts [traders with open sales contracts] were watching some steady buying in the winter months, and they panicked," said Enerfax analysts. The December crude contract jumped by 63¢ to $55.17/bbl, while the January position advanced by 59¢ to $54.76/bbl. Spot market, WTI lost 5¢ to $55.18/bbl. Gasoline climbed by 1.5¢ to $1.41/gal. Heating oil inched up by 0.28¢ to $1.5681/gal.
Oct. 28
Energy prices plunged lower Wednesday, wiping out gains from the previous session, as the market reacted to a larger-than-expected increase in US crude inventories. Traders shrugged off a drop in distillate fuel stocks—the sixth is as many weeks—down by 2.4 million bbl to 116.6 million bbl during the week ended Oct. 22. Instead, they focused on the crude increase of 4 million bbl to 283.4 million bbl.
December crude plummeted by $2.71 to $52.46/bbl on NYMEX, while the January position lost $2.59 to $52.17/bbl. Spot market WTI was down by $2.71 to $52.47/bbl. Gasoline for November delivery fell by 7.64¢ to $1.34/gal on NYMEX. Heating oil for the same month declined by 7.26¢ to $1.50/gal. The expiring November natural gas contract plunged by 77.6¢ to $7.63/Mcf on NYMEX, "the largest drop since December, as storage inventories approach record levels," said Enerfax analysts.
Oct. 29
Energy prices continued to tumble Thursday with the momentum created by the market's earlier reaction to a larger-than-expected increase in US commercial crude inventories.
The December crude contract fell by $1.54 to $50.92/bbl on NYMEX, while the January position lost $1.43 to $50.74/bbl. Spot market WTI also lost $1.54, to $50.93/bbl. Gasoline for November delivery dropped 4.29¢ to $1.29/gal. Heating oil for the same month retreated by 4.23¢ to $1.45/gal. The new front-month December natural gas contract slipped by 9.1¢ to $8.68/Mcf.
Nov. 1
Energy prices generally rebounded Friday as traders protected themselves from any market surprises over the weekend. Meanwhile, officials with Iraq's interim government said Sunday they have allocated $1.2 billion for upstream investment to boost that country's oil production to 3.2 million b/d.
The December crude contract gained 84¢ to $51.76/bbl, while the January position advanced 86¢ to $51.60/bbl. Spot market, WTI increased by 84¢, to $51.77/bbl. Gasoline for November delivery was up by 2.14¢ to $1.31/gal. However, heating oil for the same month slipped by 0.7¢ to $1.4462/gal. The December natural gas contract bumped up by 4.1¢ to $8.73/Mcf, "lifted by a late rally in crude oil prices despite mild early-week weather forecasts that softened the [spot] cash market," said analysts Monday at Enerfax Daily.
