The Platts JKM for March ended the Asian trading at $6.80/MMBtu Friday, losing 30 cents on the week, as the market came under pressure from new supplies and weak indications from tender results.Offers for cargoes for delivery in March were seen ranging from below $7/MMBtu to the mid $7s/MMBtu, while bids were heard to be in the mid to high $6s/MMBtu toward the end of the week.

Trade activity was thin as demand for H1 March dwindled and end-users continued to show limited interest due to their high stocks.

Demand from traders however provided some support as they looked to optimize their positions delivering into Asia, sources said.

Australia's North West Shelf LNG was heard to have awarded six cargoes in the low $6s/MMBtu for FOB and in the high $6s/MMBtu for DES cargoes. The first tranche of the tender was offering an unspecified number of cargoes for loading in April and May.

Validity for bids in the second tranche of the tender is due to expire Friday, February 6.

New supplies emerged through tenders this week, weighing on the market.

Russia's Sakhalin launched a supply tender offering eight cargoes for delivery from April 2015 to March 2016, sources said. It is a closed tender with mainly long-term buyers and stakeholders invited.

Likewise, Papua New Guinea issued a tender for one cargo for April delivery on a DES basis and it closes on February 9, sources said.

While the Platts JKM continued to slide, NBP prices remained firm.

UK NBP month-ahead gas was assessed Wednesday higher than the Platts JKM for month-ahead LNG deliveries for the first time since March 2011, with NBP prices backed by Norwegian gas outages and cold temperatures.

NBP March gas was assessed at $7.050/MMBtu Wednesday and the March JKM at $6.900/MMBtu.

Further out, interest in cargoes delivery in April started to emerge with demand from India and Japan. But the buyers were in no rush as they expect prices to move lower, sources said.

On Friday, offers for cargoes delivery in April were seen in the high $6s/MMBtu while bids were heard to be in the low $6s/MMBtu.

Meanwhile, the Asia Pacific day rate dropped by a total $10,000/d to $50,000/d this week due to softening demand.
Source: http://www.platts.com/latest-news/natural-gas/tokyo/platts-lng-japan-korea-marker-for-march-drops-26005484