LNG

June 29 (LNGJ) - US spot natural gas prices and futures soared and the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) front-month contract expired above $3.60 per million British thermal units. The Henry Hub spot price also jumped to $3.59 per MMBtu as a US heatwave led to record temperatures in the Pacific Northwest and spurred demand for cooling. The US benchmark prices affect LNG contracts linked to the Henry Hub. The rising US temperatures led to pipeline issues in some areas.

   Spot natural gas prices also continued to strengthen in other regions, reaching $7.00 per MMBtu in California. US weather forecasters expect the heatwave to reach the East Coast by July 6 and to last until at least July 12, resulting in high temperatures in most US regions and firm domestic gas-fired power demand.

Liquefied natural gas cargo liftings increased in the week along with all natural gas and LNG values in the complex from the Dutch Title Transfer Facility to the front-month US Henry Hub and the spot LNG price for North Asia, on demand prospects from global economic growth.

The Intercontinental Exchange has released its latest statistics showing a 46 percent year-on-year surge in the average daily volumes of trading in the Japan-Korea Marker (JKM) spot LNG price for North Asia, while the main European LNG product, the Dutch Title Transfer Facility (TTF), showed a 24 percent jump in daily volumes.

US LNG exports are facing a temporary market glut, putting downward pressure on prices that were more than 40 percent higher in the Atlantic and Pacific Basins a year ago.

The US exported five LNG cargoes last week, a drop from seven shipments in the previous week, as domestic natural gas demand fell by 10 percent and inventories ended the winter heating season at their lowest level since 2014.