據海灣時報網站8月3日消息 7月份，液化天然氣市場連續第三個月萎縮，因為各國仍在努力應對冠狀病毒大流行帶來的經濟影響。

彭博社編制的船舶跟蹤數據顯示，上月全球燃料出口較上年下降9.4%，為至少2017年12月以來最大的同比降幅。最大的削減來自美國和澳大利亞。從月度來看，出口比6月份的水平微升了2.5%。

疫情給增長最快的化石燃料潑了冷水，預計需求下降可能會延續到2021年。隨著液化天然氣市場高速增長的停滯，一系列一度前景光明的出口項目正艱難地尋找融資渠道，這將威脅到未來10年更嚴重的供應過剩。

荷蘭皇家殼牌和道達爾作為世界上最大的液化天然氣供應商，它們已經在出口設施上投資了數十億美元，以滿足日益增長的燃料需求。

由于Covid-19阻礙了經濟活動，使庫存接近產能，一些全球最大的液化天然氣買家難以為今年夏天的合約出貨騰出空間，這迫使出口商做出艱難的決定，降低產量，從市場上截留貨物，以平衡全球供應。

美國出口較上年同期下降約40%，原因是在歐洲和亞洲的套利機會破滅后，客戶可能會取消從墨西哥灣沿岸項目裝載的超過50批貨物。

亞洲是燃料需求最大的地區，由于外界猜測冬季取暖季節的開始將促進消費，亞洲的現貨價格已開始從創紀錄的低位回升。

同時，由于Covid-19措施迫使買家減少交貨量，燃料進口量同比下降5.1%，這是進口連續第二個月下降，此前6月是至少2017年12月以來首次同比下降。

韓國7月份的進口量比去年下降了80多萬噸，為所有國家中最多，因為韓國最大的買家要求推遲高庫存水平的發貨。盡管日本上月進口近570萬噸，為3月以來最大，但仍落后2019年水平約9.3%。

吳恒磊 編譯自 海灣時報

原文如下：

Global LNG exports shrink a 3rd month as virus curbs demand

The liquefied natural gas market contracted a third month in July as countries continue to struggle with the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic.

Global exports of the fuel last month dropped 9.4% from the previous year, the steepest year-over-year decline since at least December 2017, according to ship-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg. The biggest cuts came from the US and Australia. On a monthly basis, exports inched up 2.5% from June levels.

The pandemic has thrown cold water on the fastest-growing fossil fuel, with demand seen possibly extending its decline through 2021. A slew of once-promising export projects are struggling to find financing as the LNG market’s breakneck expansion stalls, threatening a worse supply glut over the next decade.

Royal Dutch Shell Plc and Total SE are among the world’s top LNG suppliers, and have invested billions of dollars into export facilities in order to capture the fuel’s burgeoning demand.

Some of the world’s biggest buyers of LNG have struggled to make room for contracted shipments this summer as Covid-19 stalled economic activity and left stockpiles near capacity. This has forced exporters to make the difficult decision to lower output and withhold cargoes from the market in a bid to balance global supplies.

US exports fell about 40% from a year earlier due to customers potentially cancelling over 50 cargoes slated to load from Gulf Coast projects after the arbitrage opportunities to Europe and Asia collapsed.

Spot prices in Asia, the biggest demand region for the fuel, have started to recover from record low levels amid speculation that onset of the winter heating season will boost consumption.

Meanwhile, imports of the fuel fell by 5.1% from a year earlier as Covid-19 measures forced buyers to reduce deliveries. It was the second-straight month for declining imports, after June marked the first year-over-year drop since at least December 2017.

South Korea’s imports for July dropped by more than 800,000 tonnes compared to last year, the most of any nation, as its top buyer requested to delay shipments on high inventory levels. While Japan imported nearly 5.7mn tonnes last month, the most since March, it is still lagging 2019 levels by about 9.3%.