A unit of one of China’s state energy giants is considering stopping shipments of US liquefied natural gas (LNG) during the coming winter in an effort to sidestep potential tariffs. sources told Bloomberg.
Instead. PetroChina. managed under China National Petroleum Corp.. would up its purchases of spot cargoes from other countries or swap US shiploads with neighbouring East Asian nations. the sources said.
As Bloomberg analyst Maggie Kuang notes. countries such as Australia. Qatar. and those in Southeast Asia are most poised to benefit from a temporary halt.
US LNG has so far been excluded from tit-for-tat tariff rounds between Washington and Beijing. although China has said recently that a 25% tariff on the commodity could be on the cards. China is currently the third largest customer for US LNG exports. however this makes up only 5.7% of China’s imports. according to Sanford C. Bernstein &. Co.