The Platts LNG Japan Korea Marker for September fell 5 cents on the week to close the Asian trading session at $10.675/MMBtu Friday amid thin buying interest.
Bids were seen in the low $10s/MMBtu for September cargoes, against offers heard in the high $10s/MMBtu.
Some buying interest however, emerged for later-delivery stems, with a deal heard done for an October-delivery cargo into Japan, market sources said. Multiple sources said a Japanese utility bought a Russian Sakhalin cargo with the seller likely to be a portfolio player.
Otherwise, fresh buying interest was limited by ample inventories reported in Japan and weak demand in China.
A Northeast Asian trading source said the weather has been mild over June to July in southern China, while the possibility of a cool-down in summer weather was a concern for some utilities in Japan.
"What concerns us is overcommitment," a source close to a Japanese utility said.
Still on Friday, Japan was hit by a heat wave with temperatures above 35 degrees Celsius (95 F) in many regions, pushing up some utilities' maximum daily power demand to the highest for the summer.
The Japan Meteorological Agency also said Friday that Kanto Koshin region, the country most populated area and where capital Tokyo lies, is forecast to experience above-average temperatures over July 26-August 25.
Meanwhile, bid and offer indications in Northeast Asia's ongoing winter negotiations remained wide apart, amid concerns that the current weak state of demand could continue well into winter season.
Offer indications for the first quarter of 2015 were in the $16s/MMBtu, against bids in the $14s/MMBtu.
Elsewhere, Brazil was heard to be back in the market actively seeking a cargo for mid-to late August delivery. Petrobras was bidding in the low $10s/MMBtu DES, an Atlantic trading source said.
