NEW YORK, March 22, 2026, 2:24 PM EDT

U.S. natural gas opens the week trading close to $3.10 per mmBtu, following Friday’s settlement for the front-month April Henry Hub contract at $3.095. The main issue up ahead: will renewed U.S.-Iran tensions targeting Gulf energy sites send gas prices higher along with the broader energy sector as trading kicks back in? MarketWatch

Timing’s in play here. Henry Hub heads into the spring shoulder season—right between peak winter heating and the ramp-up for summer cooling—just as the global LNG crunch gets sharper. After Thursday’s price jump, Reuters said Saturday that the EU pushed members to scale back gas-storage refill goals to 80% from 90%. Officials, it seems, want to avoid fueling more upside. Reuters

Right now, U.S. weather looks mild. NOAA’s new 6-10 day and 8-14 day forecasts show most of the lower 48 heading for warmer-than-average temperatures, except the Northeast, which still stands apart. That mix suggests heating demand should ease off heading through late March into early April. Climate Prediction Center

Storage numbers are pointing in that direction. The Energy Information Administration logged a 35 billion cubic feet injection for the week ending March 13, taking total inventories up to 1.883 trillion cubic feet—2.6% higher than the five-year average. The next update lands March 26. EIA Information Releases

The bullish factor is coming from abroad. On Thursday, Reuters reported that Iranian strikes have taken out 17% of Qatar’s LNG export capacity — that’s 12.8 million tonnes per year — and repairs could stretch from three up to five years. QatarEnergy CEO Saad al-Kaabi said force majeure might have to be declared on some long-term supply deals to Europe and Asia, a move that would let the company suspend deliveries after such disruptions. Reuters

Analysts aren’t ignoring the risks. Saul Kavonic at MST Financial described the situation as a “doomsday gas-crisis scenario.” Tom Marzec-Manser of Wood Mackenzie added that gas prices in Europe and Asia are set to “remain elevated for longer,” as power generators and industrial players look to alternative fuels when possible. Reuters

Politics over the weekend just added to the confusion. On Sunday, Reuters said President Donald Trump warned he’d destroy Iran’s power infrastructure unless the Strait of Hormuz was cleared for shipping in 48 hours. Iran, for its part, fired back, threatening energy and desalination facilities across the Gulf. IG analyst Tony Sycamore labeled the standoff a “48-hour ticking time bomb” for markets. Reuters

Domestic supply isn’t looking tight enough yet to spark a breakout. U.S. gas rigs fell by two to 131 this week, according to Baker Hughes—the lowest count since early February. Even so, the EIA projects U.S. gas output will climb, reaching 109.5 billion cubic feet per day in 2026 from 107.7 bcfd in 2025. Reuters

That’s part of the reason gas-linked stocks can move out of sync with prompt futures. Cheniere and Venture Global both jumped after Qatar revealed the extent of the damage, while Reuters noted buyers are putting more focus on supply outside the Middle East. Companies like NextDecade and Sempra are increasingly seen as players in the longer-term replacement mix. Reuters

The week sets up for a clear divide. No new Gulf gas or LNG disruptions? Traders may pivot back to the mild U.S. forecast and the early pace of storage injections. But if weekend threats materialize and outages crop up, Henry Hub might begin tracking global moves more closely than it has recently. Climate Prediction Center

Summer’s still in focus on the strip. CME quotes put May at about $3.07 per mmBtu, with June bumped up to $3.20, July holding $3.47, and August at $3.56. Each contract remains above April’s $3.10. Traders are watching three things to break the standoff: Thursday’s storage print, the latest weather models, and any sudden headlines from the Gulf. CME Group

Price movements in platinum are often sharper than gold or silver due to its limited availability and reliance on a few global mining regions. Automotive regulations, global production levels, and technology usage influence the platinum price today. As platinum becomes more relevant in clean energy applications, its daily rate has gained importance for both buyers and investors.

Price movements in platinum are often sharper than gold or silver due to its limited availability and reliance on a few global mining regions. Automotive regulations, global production levels, and technology usage influence the platinum price today. As platinum becomes more relevant in clean energy applications, its daily rate has gained importance for both buyers and investors.

Domestic coffee prices

The domestic coffee market entered Sunday (March 22) with a calm state after a strong increase at the end of the week. According to records, purchase prices in key Central Highlands regions simultaneously surged by another 500 – 700 VND/kg in the previous session, pushing the average price level of the whole region to 94,000 VND/kg. This is the highest price range recorded since the beginning of March, showing the extremely strong recovery momentum of Vietnamese coffee.

Detailed purchase prices in regions:

Dak Lak, Gia Lai and Dak Nong (old): Simultaneously maintaining the highest level in the region at 94,000 VND/kg.

Lam Dong: Nestling stable at 93,000 VND/kg after a 700 VND increase at the end of the week.

Looking back over the past week, coffee prices have had a spectacular “comeback”. From the bottom of 90,400 VND at the beginning of the week (March 16), prices have continuously broken through to regain more than 3,500 VND per kg, dispelling concerns after forecasts about record crops in Brazil.

World coffee prices

At the end of the trading week, international futures exchanges recorded a clear polarization between the two coffee flows:

New York Stock Exchange (Arabica): Closing the trading week at the highest level in 1.5 months. May 2026 futures closed at 309.75 cents/lb. Concerns about the closure of the Strait of Hormuz disrupting global transportation completely overwhelmed the pressure from StoneX’s record production report of 75.3 million sacks.

London Stock Exchange (Robusta): May 2026 delivery limit stopped at 3,664 USD/ton. Despite receiving slight profit-taking pressure at the end of the week due to the strengthening USD, Robusta still received solid support as inventories on the ICE exchange continued to be at a record low in the past 2 months.

Market opinion

Last week, the market witnessed the strength of geopolitical factors confronting long-term supply forecasts. The sharp increase in logistics, insurance and fuel costs due to the conflict in the Middle East has created a temporary “bottleneck”, pushing coffee prices to recover strongly. However, abundant rainfall in Brazil (reaching 139% of the historical average) and Vietnam’s January-February exports increasing by 14% are still factors that need to be noted when entering the new week.

Forecast for next week, coffee prices will continue to fluctuate positively around the 93,500 – 95,500 VND/kg range. If the sea transport situation shows no signs of cooling down, prices may soon re-establish the 96,000 VND mark as at the end of February.

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Price movements in platinum are often sharper than gold or silver due to its limited availability and reliance on a few global mining regions. Automotive regulations, global production levels, and technology usage influence the platinum price today. As platinum becomes more relevant in clean energy applications, its daily rate has gained importance for both buyers and investors.

U.S. natural gas prices are nearly flat on Friday with speculators hoping for a repeat performance of yesterday’s 3% gains. Thursday’s sharply higher close was fueled by a jump in European natural gas prices to a 3-year high. The sympathy spike in April natural gas futures was in reaction to an attack on Qatar’s natural gas export plant at Ras Laffan Industrial City. While the short-term impact on U.S. natural gas prices is subdued when compared to the movement in European prices, the longer-term view is more bullish given that the damage to the Qatar facility may take more than three years to repair.