China Trims LNG Purchases as Middle East Tensions Inflate Costs

The cooling demand follows an aggressive three-month buying spree that lasted through May. Current market conditions, where prices climbed from $20 per million British thermal units in August to $26 in early September, have forced a strategic pivot. Kpler data suggests this slowdown is not isolated to China; total Asian inflows are trending toward their lowest levels in eight years, hitting 20.09 million tons compared to 22.27 million tons during the same period last year.

State-backed importers are now actively seeking long-term supply agreements that bypass the Strait of Hormuz. While Beijing maintains its binding contracts with Qatar, the extension of force majeure on Qatari exports has tightened global supply. These logistical bottlenecks, paired with the looming Northern Hemisphere heating season, suggest that price volatility will persist, forcing China to balance its energy security needs against the high cost of spot market dependence.