Taiwan is preparing to buy more liquefied natural gas from the US to reduce its trade surplus and potentially avoid higher tariffs.
State-owned CPC Corp. and the economy ministry are in negotiations with an Alaska-based export plant for supplies, Taipei-based Central News Agency said, citing an unidentified ministry official. CPC and the ministry didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.
South Korea, Vietnam and the European Union are among energy buyers trying to appease President Donald Trump — and reduce the threat of tariffs — by looking to increase purchases from the biggest exporter of the super-chilled fuel and largest producer of crude. Trump on Friday said Japan would buy a record volume of American LNG.
Taiwan’s trade surplus with the US surged more than 80 percent to a record $64.9 billion last year. The island got about 10 percent of its LNG from the US last year, with most shipments arriving from Australia and Qatar under long-term supply contracts.
Source: by Sing Yee Ong for Bloomberg