The two new forces in the global liquefied natural gas (LNG) market—the United States as a supplier and China as a buyer—are locked in an escalating trade war, which saw Beijing slapping a 10-percent import tariff on imports of U.S. LNG. Although the levy is lower than China’s initial threat of a 25-percent tariff, it is bound to influence the LNG market in the short-term with winter coming in the northern hemisphere, and in the long-term with shifting trade routes. The Chinese tariff could prompt non-U.S. suppliers of LNG to charge from Chinese buyers on the spot market higher prices that would be just below the U.S. LNG price with the 10-percent tariff, according to analysts who spoke to CNBC . This higher LNG pricing could cost Chinese buyers—mainly the state-held giants PetroChina, Sinopec, and CNOOC who are the most active on the market—an additional US$4 million to US$5 […]