China steps back from fresh LNG contracts

The move could have major ramifications for the LNG sector

Discussion of the outlook for LNG demand growth almost always begins with China and ends with just about everyone else. China already accounts for 20% of global LNG buying and surpassed Japan in 2023 as the largest buyer. These details highlight why it is so important that China is not signing long-term LNG contracts in 2024. China has signed new contracts amounting to less than 2mt/yr so far this year, despite a wide range of offers coming from LNG producers and portfolio players being faced with significant amounts of unsigned volumes. Why this intermission is occurring is not totally clear and does not necessarily suggest China is done buying LNG for the foreseeable future. For well