Clients often talk about the effects that the prompt can have on the curve, and whilst this is correct it shouldn't be. Prompt the week ahead and day ahead, is influenced by pure demand and supply economics, for scheduling purposes. If there is alot of gas and power stations available then we would expect prices to fall and if there is mild weather then this will reduce demand and in turn this should have a bearish effect, and vice versa will have a bulish effect.

In reality though traders often look at market screens, and when the pings become more frantic as more and more trades go through and there are more sellers and "givens" on the screen the general mood is that the market is soft or falling. Those curve traders naturally start looking for reasons to sell, because that is the modus operandi they are in. In reality though, a return of a plant for next week should have no bearing on weather Winter 06 is higher or lower. The only relationship we can take from the prompt is how easy the system is coping with meeting demand in the current circumstances. If the answer is with ease and prices are falling then this suggests that the backend of the curve which traditionally has priced problems and lack of certainity into it, is most probably over inflating this premium of uncertainity and hence the sell off.