-- European natural gas futures were up on Wednesday, after US President Donald Trump reportedly signaled an extended blockade against Iran.
The front-month Dutch TTF contract was up 2.31% at 44.60 euros ($52.19) per megawatt hour, while the UK NBP was up 2.44% at 109.99 British pence ($1.48) per therm.
Far from ending hostilities in the region, Trump has reportedly asked aides to prepare for an extended blockade against Iranian ports, to ramp up economic pressure against Tehran, according to a Wall Street Journal report, citing US officials familiar with the matter.
In a Truth Social post on Tuesday, Trump said that Iran had informed the US that they were in a "state of collapse" and was eager to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. However, there has been no confirmation on this from the Iranian side.
Meanwhile, the strategically crucial Strait, which accounts for one-fifth of global LNG flows, remained effectively closed for the ninth week running, with just five vessels passing through over the past 24 hours, according to the Hormuz Strait Monitor.
On Tuesday, an LNG tanker managed to transit via the Strait for the first time in nearly two months, since the conflict began, according to a report by Bloomberg, citing ship tracking data.
However, according to Daniel Hynes, a senior commodity strategist at ANZ, Europe still faces "challenges in refilling depleted gas storage ahead of next winter."
He said regional gas storage has typically entered the heating season between 80% and 100% full over the past five years. This time, inventories sit at just 31.97% of capacity, according to Gas Infrastructure Europe, leaving the region with a steep refill challenge as costs climb and supply constraints persist.