Asia's LNG demand stays muted in April while Europe eases

.LAUNCESTON, Australia, April 29 (Reuters) - Asia's imports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) remained tepid in April while Europe's started to show signs of the usual seasonal easing as winter peak demand passed.

Asia, the world's biggest importer of the super-chilled fuel, is on track to see arrivals of 22.40 million metric tons in April, according to data compiled by commodity analysts Kpler

This is down from March's 22.68 million tons, although it's up slightly on a per day basis given April is one day shorter than March.

Here’s a synthesis of the current LNG demand trends in Asia and Europe, based on the search results:

### **Asia's Muted LNG Demand in April 2025**

1. **Weak Spot Demand**

- Asian spot LNG prices remained low in April, with Northeast Asia holding at **$13.00/MMBtu**, a six-month low, due to tepid demand and high inventories after a mild winter .

- China’s LNG imports dropped to their lowest since 2022, partly due to a **15% tariff on U.S. LNG**, while Japan and South Korea saw only modest fluctuations .

2. **Factors Behind Weak Demand**

- **High storage levels** from the mild winter reduced immediate import needs .

- **Renewable energy expansion** in China and stable pipeline gas supplies (e.g., Power of Siberia) lessened reliance on LNG .

- **Macroeconomic uncertainty**, including U.S.-China trade tensions, further dampened market sentiment .

3. **Regional Variations**

- **South Asia (India, Pakistan, Bangladesh)** showed some demand due to lower prices, but overall Asian imports fell **10% YoY in Q1 2025** .

### **Europe’s Seasonal Easing**

1. **Post-Winter Demand Decline**

- Europe’s LNG demand softened as winter ended, with storage levels at **33.6%** in March, reducing urgency for imports .

- Dutch TTF gas prices remained range-bound (**€40–45/MWh**) amid declining heating demand .

2. **Competition with Asia**

- Despite higher European prices (**24% surge since July 2024** vs. Asia’s 12%), muted demand kept cargoes flowing to Asia, which took **43% of U.S. LNG exports** in July 2024 .

- Europe’s storage was **87% full by August 2024**, further easing import needs .

### **Outlook**

- **Asia**: Demand may rebound with summer cooling needs, but long-term growth hinges on emerging economies (e.g., India, Southeast Asia) .

- **Europe**: Prices could rise again if geopolitical risks (e.g., Russian supply disruptions) or delayed LNG projects tighten supply .

For deeper analysis, refer to the cited sources. Let me know if you'd like specifics on pricing, trade flows, or regional breakdowns.

Spot LNG for delivery to North Asia reached a high so far this year of $16.10 per million British thermal units (mmBtu) in the week to February 14, capping a rally that saw it rise 94% from its 2024 low of $8.30 in March last year.

The price has since eased back to $11.80 per mmBtu in the week to April 25, but even at these levels it's likely that LNG is struggling to be competitive in China.

Another factor crimping China's LNG demand is the trade war with the United States, which has seen the world's two biggest economies levy increasing tariffs on each other's imports.

This underscores how important U.S. LNG has become to Europe, with a share of 55% of the total imports so far in 2025, according to Kpler.

Europe's total LNG imports for April are estimated at 10.44 million tons, down from 12.74 million in March, which was the second-highest month on record.

While Europe's LNG imports show a seasonal pattern of declining after winter, they have shifted structurally higher after the loss of most of the supply of pipeline natural gas from Russia in the wake of that country's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

April's LNG imports are 1.42 million tons, or 15.7%, higher than for April last year and the increase has been more than met by the United States, with April 2025 imports being 1.79 million tons higher than for the same month last year.

Europe's LNG imports from Russia have shown a small decline, with April arrivals of 1.38 million tons, down from 1.60 million in the same month in 2024.

The challenge for European LNG importers will be to meet their ideal of cutting off Russian cargoes while still being able to meet demand.

The United States is the obvious alternative, but with virtually every LNG importer other than China seeking to buy more U.S. energy as part of efforts to appease Trump, it's likely that even with the new production coming on line this year there won't be enough U.S. LNG for everybody.

The views expressed here are those of the author, a columnist for Reuters.