Middle East Tensions Spark Global LNG Price Surge

LNG bunker prices have surged globally due to rising tensions in the Middle East and supply concerns. The situation around the Strait of Hormuz has increased fears of disruptions to energy shipments, leading to a sharp rise in European gas prices.

The Dutch TTF natural gas contract has climbed by around 6% over the past week to $22.41/MMBtu ($1,165/mt), mirroring gains in Rotterdam's LNG bunker price. The Rotterdam price jumped by $70/mt to $1,279/mt, driven by strong summer demand and low hydro and nuclear outages.

Singapore's LNG bunker price has also surged, rising by $102/mt over the past week to $1,442/mt. The widening Singapore-ARA spread reached $163/mt, while the NYMEX Japan/Korea Marker (JKM) contract rose by $1.72/MMBtu to $22.94/MMBtu ($1,193/mt).

The rise in JKM was attributed to geopolitical tensions, with JOGMEC commenting that it supported the narrowing JKM-TTF spread and raised concerns over tightening spot LNG availability in Asia.