Benchmark Dutch and British wholesale gas prices rose on Thursday morning, as US President Donald Trump vowed more aggressive strikes on Iran without committing to a specific timeline to end the war, unsettling investors worried about prolonged disruptions to global supply.
The benchmark Dutch front-month contract at the TTF hub opened 6.25 per cent higher at €50.48 per megawatt hour (MWh), before trimming gains to 3.56 per cent at €49.20/MWh, or around $16.62/mmBtu, by 0853 GMT, ICE data showed.
The British April contract was up 3.57 per cent at 124.98p per therm, after it opened 5.9 per cent higher, ICE data showed.
"We're going to hit them extremely hard over the next two to three weeks. We're going to bring them back to the Stone Ages where they belong."
Trump also suggested the war could escalate if Iranian leaders did not give in to US terms during negotiations, with strikes on Iran's energy and oil infrastructure possible.
"Middle East developments remain the dominant swing factor. The absence of clarity or timeline was not what markets expected, while hopes of a rapid reopening of the Strait of Hormuz were pushed back," said Wayne Bryan, gas research principal at LSEG.
With the Easter holiday approaching, risk sensitivity is likely to remain elevated.
Roughly a fifth of the world's LNG typically passes through the Strait of Hormuz, but shipping through the narrow waterway has come to a near-standstill since the US and Israel began strikes on Iran on February 28.
From a fundamental perspective, gas consumption is forecast notably weaker on the day ahead both for heating and for power generation, while storage injections are underway as the market enters day two of the injection season, Bryan said.
(Reporting By Marwa Rashad; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)
