The United States is swimming in natural gas, and China has a huge appetite for the relatively clean and efficient fuel to power its economy as it shifts away from coal. That dynamic was on display from 2016 to 2017, when Chinese purchases of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the United States increased by nearly six-fold, resulting in China buying nearly 15 percent of all U.S. LNG exports.

China is poised to become a top consumer of natural gas and the United States is in position to supply that massive market, but the burgeoning trade war has gotten in the way. On September 24, China imposed a 10 percent tariff on U.S. LNG as part of its response to tariffs the Trump administration levied on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods. Beijing’s retaliatory tariffs have slowed U.S. LNG exports to China to a crawl at a time when its demand for LNG is on the rise. The tariffs have turned some Chinese investors away from inking long-term contracts with U.S. LNG exporters. That has led to doubt being cast on the prospects for the construction of new, specialized LNG export terminals on the west coast of the United States, impacting jobs in multiple sectors of the U.S. economy.

U.S. LNG Exports By Vessel, Million Cubic Feet
	2016	2017
Japan	11,137	53,218
China	17,221	103,410
Mexico	27,470	140,321
South Korea	10,166	130,185
World	183,873	706,424
Data: U.S. Department of Energy, Energy Information Administration