Market Watch

May gas futures rallied 6.4¢ to $2.52 per million Btu as bulls found some traction in forecasts for a cooler than expected end of April. However, Thursday's storage data could ultimately decide market direction (Briefly Noted). Analysts are modeling a larger than usual injection for the week, and a bullish miss could propel the contract into the $2.60s. The contract traded in a $2.458-$2.546 range. The 12-month strip rose 5¢ to $2.75, while the 2022 calendar strip was up 2.5¢ to $2.641 (Futures contracts). * * * A cold front kicked up prices in the Western US, with Questar seeing the most significant cash price move of the day, rising 23¢ to $2.41. This compared to benchmark Henry Hub cash prices that were up 1¢ at $2.38. In West Texas, cash prices at the Permian's Waha Hub rose 13¢ to average $2.24, while Rockies leader Kern/Opal rose 19¢ to $2.42, SoCal Citygate advanced 18¢ to average $3.12 and Northwest Sumas gained 14¢ to average $2.55. In Canada, Alberta benchmark Aeco rose 1¢ to $1.92.In the Northeast, Transco zone 6 New York went down 1¢ to average $1.84, while Boston-area Algonquin declined 4¢ to average $1.95 (Daily spot prices). * * * WTI May crude futures gained 44¢ and closed at $59.77/bbl in the wake of a sizeable 3.5 million-barrel inventory draw that might be tied to a reported 200,000 b/d decline in US oil production. The EIA also reported that gasoline stocks gained 4 million barrels, while distillates, including heating oil and diesel, rose by 1.5 million barrels.