LNG

The liquefied natural gas shipping sector expects a steady improvement after spot charter day rates dropped to a low of $40,000 per day in the first quarter after winter peaks of more than $180,000 per day as companies now focus on filling new US project shipment demands and forthcoming cargo tenders for Argentina in the Southern Hemisphere winter.

LNG shipping companies are hoping for higher multi-year charter rates to be influenced by the headline spot rates for the most modern vessels reported by UK brokers Clarksons as reaching a peak of $82,000 per day through the end of the fourth quarter, a rise of about 80 percent from the year-ago period.