PERTH, March 30 (Reuters) – Asian liquefied natural gas spot
prices have risen to around $16 per million British thermal
units (mmBtu) LNG-AS since hitting a low in mid-February as
buyers continue to stock up on summer supplies.

Prices for LNG for delivery into Japan, the world’s largest
LNG importer, were seen around the $16 per mmBtu level and
higher for June cargoes, and are expected to continue climbing.

PERTH/LONDON, March 23 (Reuters) – Asian LNG prices for
April rose closer to $16 per million British thermal units
(mmBtu) this week, with cargoes delivering in May already priced
above that level as customers stocked up on summer supplies.

Last week, Asian prices were around $15.70 to $15.80 per
mmBtu.

The world’s top LNG buyer, Japan, is headed into summer with
just two of its 54 nuclear reactors online as public safety
concerns, following the March 2011 tsunami that triggered a
nuclear crisis, have kept reactors that were shut for
maintenance out of commission.

PERTH, March 20 (Reuters) – Australian iron ore miners, key
beneficiaries of China’s modern-day industrial revolution, on
Tuesday signaled demand growth was finally slowing in response
to Beijing’s moves to cool its economy.

It was the strongest indication yet from an industry closest
to China’s phenomenal industrial growth over the last decade
that the boom times, if not over, are tempering.

PERTH, March 20 (Reuters) – Australian iron ore miners, key
beneficiaries of China’s modern-day industrial revolution, on
Tuesday signaled demand growth was finally slowing in response
to Beijing’s moves to cool its economy.

BHP Billiton, the world’s biggest miner, said it
was seeing signs of “flattening” iron ore demand from China,
though for now it was pushing ahead with ambitious plans to
expand production.

PERTH/LONDON, March 16 (Reuters) – Asian liquefied
natural gas (LNG) spot prices rose slightly toward $16 per
million British thermal units (mmBtu) LNG-AS this week as
higher demand for the summer began to kick in.

Prices for LNG for delivery into Japan, the world’s largest
LNG importer, were around $15.70 to $15.80 per mmBtu, according
to market sources, with some expecting to see prices move up to
$16 per mmBtu in the coming weeks.

PERTH (Reuters) – Brent crude inched above $125 on Thursday, after falling more than a dollar the previous session, as traders balanced a firm dollar and bulging U.S. crude stocks with lingering concerns about tensions between Iran and the West.

London ICE Brent crude edged up eight cents to $125.05 per barrel by 0728 GMT, after settling down $1.25 at $124.97 on Wednesday. The April contract will expire at the end of Thursday’s session.

PERTH, March 15 (Reuters) – Brent crude edged down on
Thursday, extending losses for a second straight session on a
firm dollar and bulging U.S. crude inventories, but prices
stayed above $124 per barrel as worries over Iranian supply
supported sentiment.

London ICE Brent crude was down 12 cents at $124.85
per barrel by 0646 GMT, after settling down $1.25 at $124.97 on
Wednesday. The April contract will expire at the end of
Thursday’s session.

PERTH, March 15 (Reuters) – U.S. oil futures inched up
in Asian trading on Thursday as strong U.S. economic data,
signalling a recovery in the world’s largest economy and supply
worries spurred by tensions over Iran’s nuclear programme
supported oil prices.

In London, Brent crude was flat on Thursday, pressured by a
fragile economic recovery in Europe, which is lagging the United
States and Asia.

OSLO/PERTH, March 12 (Reuters) – Freight rates for
liquefied natural gas, the super-cooled commodity in red hot
demand as the world struggles to replace lost nuclear capacity,
will stay elevated and volatile at least through 2014, shipping
insiders said.

LNG is one of the few profitable sectors in the shipping
industry, in contrast to dry bulk and tanker markets, which
continue to suffer from oversupply and funding difficulties.

By Rebekah Kebede

(Reuters) – A deadly landslide in the mountains of Papua New Guinea, near where U.S. oil major Exxon Mobil is building a $15.7 billion gas project, is raising fresh questions about the global energy industry’s scramble for ever harder-to-reach resources.

The landslide tore through a quarry used by Exxon in January, killing at least 25 people in the poor South Pacific country, but it has stirred little international publicity, even though an expert report had questioned the safety of the excavations.