• The EIA reported on September 1, 2026 that US LNG exports averaged 17.4 Bcf/d in the first half of 2026, 23% above the first half of 2025, and credits higher capacity.
• The EIA says Strait of Hormuz disruption in March cut off 20% of global LNG supplies, mostly from Qatar; it gives no first-half 2026 volume for the loss.
• US exports to Asia rose 2.3 Bcf/d (108%) year on year, while exports to Europe rose 0.1 Bcf/d (1%), per the EIA.
• The EIA's September 2026 STEO forecasts US LNG exports of 17.3 Bcf/d in the second half of 2026 and 18.7 Bcf/d in the first half of 2027.
• This is analysis, not trading advice.

LNG is the flexible layer of global gas trade: a cargo can go to any buyer with a terminal, while a pipeline ties a producer to fixed neighbours. Offshore Technology's analyst comment argues the US is the biggest winner of the current reshuffle. The EIA's September 1, 2026 data confirm a large rise in US export volume, but attribute it to new capacity. The open question is how much of the gain is durable once Gulf supply routes normalise.

New capacity drove the 23% rise

The EIA's September 1, 2026 note says US LNG exports averaged 17.4 Bcf/d in the first six months of 2026, 23% more than a year earlier, and credits higher capacity. Plaquemines LNG is exporting at full capacity and Corpus Christi Stage 3 is running six of seven trains; together they will add a combined 4.0 Bcf/d of nominal capacity when complete. Golden Pass began exports in April and shipped less than 0.2 Bcf/d between April and June, per the EIA.

Hormuz disruption changed who needed US cargoes

The EIA states that in March, disruptions to LNG shipments through the Strait of Hormuz cut off 20% of global LNG supplies, mostly from Qatar. It adds that Asian buyers, which import roughly 80% of Qatari LNG according to a Reuters report the EIA cites, had to compete for limited spot cargoes. The EIA does not give a first-half 2026 Hormuz volume, so the size of the loss in cargoes is not independently confirmed here.

Asia took the largest incremental share

Asia was the main destination shift. The EIA reports US exports to Asia rose 2.3 Bcf/d, or 108%, in the first half of 2026 versus the first half of 2025, while exports to Europe rose only 0.1 Bcf/d, or 1%. The largest single destinations were Egypt and the Netherlands at 1.7 Bcf/d each, followed by Italy at 1.4, France at 1.2 and the United Kingdom at 1.1.

Benchmarks rose but stayed below 2022

Gas benchmarks were higher but not extreme by recent history. The EIA reports TTF averaged $14.74/MMBtu in the first half of 2026, up from $13.10 a year earlier, and JKM reached a four-year high of $15.56/MMBtu, up $2.38 from the first half of 2025. Both sit well below the first-half 2022 levels the EIA cites, $32.42 for TTF and $29.00 for JKM. These are period averages from the September 1 release, not spot quotes.

What to watch next

The EIA's September 2026 Short-Term Energy Outlook projects US LNG exports of 17.3 Bcf/d in the second half of 2026 and 18.7 Bcf/d in the first half of 2027. Watch whether Golden Pass Train 2, expected late in 2026, and the remaining Corpus Christi trains arrive on schedule, and whether Asian buyers keep contracting US cargoes as Gulf supply recovers. The data support a clear first-half volume gain; they do not alone establish a permanent structural win. This is analysis, not trading advice.