LONDON, March 26, 2026, 12:14 GMT
Shell Plc shares rose on Thursday as investors bet the energy major’s large liquefied natural gas business would gain from a fresh squeeze in gas markets after war damage in Qatar and continued disruption around the Strait of Hormuz. The London-listed stock was up 0.86% at 3,462.5 pence at 11:56 GMT. 1
That matters because Shell is the world’s largest LNG trader. LNG, or liquefied natural gas, is gas chilled into liquid form so it can be shipped by tanker, and that trade becomes more valuable when cargoes are rerouted and prices jump. Reuters reported on Wednesday that investors have been bidding up Western gas suppliers and traders as flows from Qatar falter. 2
The shock is growing, not shrinking. Analysts at S&P Global Energy, ICIS, Kpler and Rystad have cut global LNG supply outlooks by as much as 35 million tons after damage to Qatar’s liquefaction trains and the blockage of Hormuz, a route that handles about 20% of global LNG flows. 3
“Countries cannot have national security without energy security,” Shell CEO Wael Sawan said this week. His warning landed as Brent crude rose more than 3% on Thursday to $105.73 a barrel and broader global equity markets slipped, with Sawan saying Europe could face energy shortages as soon as next month if the disruption persists. 4
“The gas price ramp has been the most important takeaway for markets,” Jefferies analyst Mike Wilson said. Bernstein analyst Irene Himona said Europe can pull in extra U.S. cargoes only by paying enough to divert them from Asia, a setup that favors traders with scale and global reach. 2
Peers moved the same way, though not by much. BP was up 0.83% in London and TotalEnergies gained 0.72% in Paris, even as broader European stocks traded lower, pointing to continued demand for energy exposure while the rest of the market worried about inflation and growth. 5
But the trade is not clean. Shell’s Pearl gas-to-liquids plant in Qatar, which turns gas into transport fuels, was taken offline after attacks earlier this month damaged one train. And the same price surge lifting traders can also curb consumption: Laura Page, manager of LNG Insight at Kpler, said the market is rebalancing through “higher prices and demand destruction in South Asia.” 6
Barclays said on Thursday that a prolonged Hormuz closure could remove 13 million to 14 million barrels per day from the market. Yet its base case still assumes traffic normalizes by early April, a path the bank said would fit with Brent averaging $85 a barrel in 2026. If that happens, some of the premium now built into energy shares could fade quickly. 7
Shell also has a more familiar prop under the stock. In February it kept its quarterly buyback at $3.5 billion despite missing fourth-quarter profit estimates. Reuters reported then that the company had bought back about a quarter of its shares over the last four years. 8
For now, investors appear more focused on Shell’s ability to profit from rerouted cargoes and volatile gas prices than on its direct Gulf exposure. That leaves the shares supported while Europe and Asia compete for replacement supply, but it also means any durable reopening of Hormuz could take some heat out of the trade. 2
