As the global gas market grapples with the Strait of Hormuz being all-but closed for nearly three months, traders are fixated on two wildcards: China and the weather.
Summer forecasts are pointing to higher-than-normal temperatures across Asia, while an El Niño weather pattern could make things even hotter. That will boost air-conditioning use and strain power grids when energy prices are already elevated. The key risk is the heat triggers stronger demand in China, the world’s No. 1 liquefied natural gas buyer.
