Asia's LNG Imports Plummet Amid Iran War Losses

Asia's liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports are expected to drop to their lowest in nearly six years in April, due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. The effective closure has cut off cargoes from major supplier Qatar, which previously supplied around 20% of global LNG.

Kpler estimates Asia's LNG imports for April at 19.03 million metric tons, down from 20.69 million in March and a winter peak of 26.34 million in December. This marks the lowest arrivals since June 2020.

China has been voluntarily curtailing its imports, with Kpler estimating its LNG imports at 3.36 million tons in April, the lowest since 3.18 million tons in April 2018 and down from a winter peak of 7.66 million tons in December.