LNG

After the Easter break there was a slow start to the LNG market this week with enquiries focused mainly on optimization and tonnage availability, with relatively healthy the rates there was little movement across both ship sizes.

BLNG1 Aus-Japan for the 170cbm lost a few hundred dollars to finish at $47,296 while the 160cbm gained just over a hundred dollars to finish at $30,866 keeping the delta around $17,000-20,000.

BLNG2 US-Continent lost for both ships with little fresh enquiry and a short week this was expected, the 174cbm fell to a close of $45,288 while the 160cbm finished $34,212 a tightening of the delta we have seen of late but in line with market expectations. For BLNG3 US-Japan the 160cbm fared worse than the larger more eco ships losing $2492 on the week to finish at $41,405 while the 174cbm fell to $53,304 a drop of $1253.

The LNG spot market is very seasonal, and the current season is waiting for a fresh injection of activity to see any movement up or down, brokers are reporting that we are at the lower end of the barrel and rates ought to rise rather than fall, but it’s never a certainty with LNG.

Period was flat with little movement on all three periods, the 6-months lost a little to $62,600 while 1-year terms rose to $77,133 and 3-year deals fell a tiny amount to $80,400.

LPG

Not a lot to report coming out of the Middle Eastern Gulf this week, BLPG1 Ras Tanura-Chiba languished a little with few fixtures and a longer tonnage list, but with many ships showing either in West or Eastern lists the tonnage could thin out. Rates themselves were a little soft after the Bank Holiday weekend and BLPG1 fell by $1.429 to a close of $64.714 and a daily TCE Earning equivalent of $43,536.

The US Market fared better with positive gains, however modest, across both routes. There are cargoes showing with May dates already suggesting April is all but finished, which could push rates down while there is a lull in activity. BLPG2 Houston-Flushing moved up by $2.6 to finish at $67.2 with a daily TCE Earning of $65,817 while BLPG3 Houston-Chiba rose by $4.285 to finish at $124.714 and a TCE Equivalent of $49,594.