LNG

Any expected issues facing the US LNG market from the recent hurricane are looking to be short lived, as the market has been muted. A few reported fixtures have helped firm up rates but there is no real driving force to show any clear direction. The BLNG1 Aus-Japan run saw positive gains trying to catch up on the Pacific, but even then it has closed with a larger delta between the Atlantic than we have seen of late.

BLNG1 on the 160cbm finished up $5,674 at $45,200 while the 174cbm finished $4,079 up at $56,100. The Atlantic market which has seen more spot fixing is now showing around a $30,000/day delta between the TDFE and 2-stoke ships against the Pacific despite both routes moving down against a rise in the East. The 174cbm Houston-Cont BLNG2 finished at $87,700 while the 160cbm saw a final price of $68,000. For Houston-Japan BLNG3 little movement meant that the 174cbm closed at $97,100 while the 160cbm closed at $77,900.

Period was quieter and those with length have been looking at what the winter market may bring before marketing ships out. The six-month remained unchanged at $102,900 while the one-year term finished up $1,000 at $83,833 and the three-year term remained unchanged at $84,000.

 

LPG

A very quiet week overall in the Middle East Gulf, BLPG1 Ras Tanura-Chiba dropped by $3.571 due to a lack of open interest from charterers. Cargoes were few and far between, with brokers not reporting a single BLPG1 cargo this week and with a publication of $59.286 and daily TCE earning equivalent of $38,286, both owners and brokers alike will be ready for the weekend.

The US market did not much better, with one Pertamina cargo fixed going east via Panama at around $95.5, which was the only fixture to be discussed. Rates fell quite significantly as BLPG2 Houston-Flushing dropped $7.6 to a close of $52.6 while BLPG3 Houston-Chiba fell by $12.285 closing at $95.29 with a daily TCE earning of $30,789.