-- European natural gas futures retraced some earlier losses in after-hours trading on Friday but remained below the previous close as optimism over potential peace agreements weighed on prices.
The front-month Dutch TTF contract declined 5.02% to 43.86 euros per megawatt-hour, while UK NBP futures dropped 5.63% to 110.19 British pence per therm.
Prices initially traded lower as momentum built around diplomatic efforts tied to Middle Eastern conflicts. A Friday Bloomberg report also indicated that Ukraine's lead negotiator with Russia sees progress toward a potential agreement with the Kremlin and suggested a resolution to the war may not take long to achieve.
However, losses were partially reversed as traders refocused on supply fundamentals, including the need to replenish low inventories and the uncertain outlook for ongoing peace negotiations.
Diplomatic developments remain in focus. US Vice President JD Vance is scheduled to hold talks with Iranian counterparts in Islamabad on Saturday, while Israeli and Lebanese negotiators are set to meet in Washington next week to discuss potential resolutions to regional conflicts.
Supply constraints continued to provide underlying support. ANZ analyst Daniel Hynes said LNG tankers remain stranded in the Persian Gulf with no clear end to the standoff, adding that the situation is being compounded by disruptions in Australia as Chevron's Wheatstone facility is operating at about 50% capacity following cyclone damage last month, while workers at the Ichthys LNG export plant are considering industrial action after failed talks with operator Inpex Corp.
The Hormuz Strait Monitor said seven ships passed the Strait in the past 24 hours, down considerably from the pre-conflict norm of around 138 per day, according to the UK's Joint Maritime Information Center.
On the storage front, Gas Infrastructure Europe reported that EU inventories stood at 28.91% of capacity on Friday, down from about 35% a year earlier.
In its Summer Supply Outlook for 2026, the European Network of Transmission System Operators for Gas said Thursday that EU infrastructure capacity should allow storage levels to reach at least 80% by Nov. 1. The group noted that steady injections since early April are a positive sign, adding that an extended refill period could ease price pressure and reduce the risk of a late-season rush to secure supplies. However, it warned that damage to the Gulf's energy infrastructure and ongoing disruption in the Strait of Hormuz could have longer-term effects. Separately, Energy Commissioner Dan Jorgensen also urged member states to consider reaching the 80% storage target earlier in the injection season to improve market certainty.