Oil
Brent crude prices fell on Friday to their lowest levels since early March as traders grew more confident about an imminent peace agreement between the US and Iran.
Brent crude futures settled at $87.33, and US West Texas Intermediate crude (WTI) finished at $84.88. For the week, Brent fell 6.2%, while WTI fell 6.3%.
US President Donald Trump called off threatened air strikes against Iran on Thursday. According to Iran's Mehr news agency, final negotiations on the memorandum will focus on nuclear and economic issues but will exclude discussions on Iran's missile programme.
One caveat, however, is that global and regional oil stocks are still low and could drift lower, even with a deal, as it would take time to ensure uninterrupted oil flows, analysts said.
Gas
Asia's spot liquefied natural gas (LNG) price rose last week to its highest level in 11 weeks as markets monitored developments in the Iran conflict and anticipated stronger demand driven by hot weather.
The average LNG price for July delivery into northeast Asia was $19.15 per million British thermal units, up from $18.80 per mmBtu the week before.
Japanese and Korean stock levels are below seasonal averages, and northeast Asian buyers have been buying cargoes to bolster stocks.
In Europe, the Dutch TTF gas price settled at $15.82 per mmBtu, posting a weekly loss of 4.0%. European gas fundamentals remain fragile, with upside risk. Global LNG exports are down year-on-year in June, while Asian LNG imports continue to rise, potentially increasing cross-basin competition for cargoes in Q4 or even earlier if summer risks materialise.
This article was supplied by the Abdullah bin Hamad Al-Attiyah International Foundation for Energy and Sustainable Development.
