Japan’s spot LNG prices continue recovering in October

Prices of spot liquefied natural gas (LNG) imported into Japan and contracted during the month of October have continued the upward trend.

Data from Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry shows that the price of spot LNG contracted during October 2020 reached $6 per mmBtu.

This is a 33.3 per cent increase compared to the previous month when the contract-based price was at $4.5 per mmBtu.

The contract-based price also jumped when compared to the corresponding month in 2019. To remind, the price of spot LNG contracted during October 2019 reached $5.5 per mmBtu.

The price of spot LNG arriving into Japan in October 2020 reached $4.9 per mmBtu, up 44.1 per cent on the $3.4 per mmBtu reported during the previous month.

However, the ministry reported a 9.3 per cent drop compared to the October 2020 arrival-based price of $5.4 per mmBtu.

The ministry surveys only spot LNG cargoes purchased by Japanese utilities and other importers.

It excludes cargo deals linked to a particular price index such as the US Henry Hub and the JKM.