MARKET WATCH: Natural gas futures prices continue upward climb

Natural gas futures prices continued to climb Feb. 21, while crude futures were off slightly.

The New York Mercantile Exchange April crude contract declined 55¢ on Feb. 21, closing at $102.20/bbl. The May contract lost 48¢ to settle at $101.37/bbl.

Heating oil for March delivery was down 7.85¢ to a rounded $3.10/gal. Reformulated gasoline stock for oxygenate blending for March delivery dropped 1.33¢ to a rounded $2.83/gal.

The March natural gas contract on NYMEX was up 7.1¢ to a rounded $6.14/MMbtu. On the US spot market, the gas price at Henry Hub, La. was $6.20/MMbtu, jumping 27.5¢.

In London, the April ICE contract for Brent crude delivery was down 45¢, closing at $109.85/bbl, while the May contract lost 50¢ to 109.48/bbl. The ICE gas oil contract for March fell $7.75 to $929.75/tonne.

The Organizational of Petroleum Exporting Countries reported its basket of 12 benchmark crudes was $106.68/bbl on Feb. 21, relinquishing 11¢.