ING’s Warren Patterson and Ewa Manthey report that European natural gas benchmarks are rising as Middle East developments threaten LNG flows from the Persian Gulf. TTF has broken above EUR50/MWh and continues higher, while Europe heads into the injection season with storage at just 52% of capacity, below the five-year average, and cargoes diverted to Asia by a premium in JKM.

TTF breaks above EUR50/MWh

"Developments in the Middle East have also seen European natural gas prices surging. TTF settled almost 5.4% higher yesterday, breaking convincingly through EUR50/MWh."

"The market continues to move higher this morning following the US reimposing a blockade on Iran, generating plenty of uncertainty over LNG flows from the Persian Gulf."

"Europe is looking vulnerable heading through the injection season, with storage just 52% full, well below the 5-year average of 68%. JKM’s continued premium to TTF is prompting LNG cargoes to be redirected to Asia, leaving Europe tighter."

(This article was created with the help of an Artificial Intelligence tool and reviewed by an editor. Know more.)