LNG

Worldwide liquefied natural gas and wholesale pipeline market prices and futures skyrocketed by nearly 50 percent in the past week as US Gulf Coast LNG cargo values hit $18 per million British thermal units for December even amid current substantial European Union gas storage levels as doubts resurface about Western energy security policies.

Oil prices fell below $40 per barrel as street unrest in cities like Seattle led to concerns about US stability and the pace of the US economic recovery, while the nation’s LNG exports dropped to half of the previous week’s level, offset by pipeline natural gas exports to Mexico jumping more than 8 percent.