LNG Tanker Rates Surge As Global Natural Gas Prices Soar

Soaring prices and demand for liquefied natural gas (LNG) in Asia have pushed spot LNG freight rates to over $200,000 per day as traders scramble to book vessels to ship the fuel to energy-starved markets in Asia. A vessel to carry LNG from Gladstone, Australia, to Tokyo is now assessed at a time charter rate of $262,215 per day by the Baltic Exchange, Lloyd’s List’s Michelle Wiese Bockmann writes in an analysis. The Pacific spot LNG freight rates have jumped this week to the highest premium on record over Atlantic rates, driven by…