Gas Market Report.

(From Lloyds List)

NORTH WEST EUROPE: Confusion reigns in the NWE market. With several large imports scheduled to arrive the market was appearing long, but it is now obvious that there is an abundance of product leaving the area and with reduced production due North Sea maintenance then the market for August may end up being tighter than was at first thought.

Trading has been very thin in the run up to setting of BPAP and as players wait to see how the market will develop. A 20 kt August TOT cargo bid at $540'August- $3 and a 10-12 kt piece was offered at $542'August flat but both failed to illicit any interest.

The handy cargo buyers are holding off for the moment as July requirements have been fulfilled. Where would players put the prices today ?

Seems with crude holding up then most of them would place the range in the $540s. Butane has been very subdued with only the one cargo traded at $565.

Prices in the $560s and even into the $570s have been mused upon as the arbitrage remains open along with interest from the petchems as naphtha remains high.

On the coaster propane market there are still no signs of any increase in fob demand, which is not too surprising given the current warm weather over most of NW Europe. Terminal sellers still appear to be fairly relaxed, but there are the first tentative indications of a bit more length on refinery availabilities. Fob prices are notionally somewhere in the $530s, but the current lack of fob buying interest may push some refinery sellers into having to conclude cif deals at lower netbacks than the $530s.