I just noticed a rather noteworthy phenomenon. Recently, Qatar's LNG fleet has run into major trouble, and more than 40 LNG ships are now sitting idle in Asian waters and unable to move.

According to vessel tracking data, these LNG ships are berthed and dispersed across multiple locations—western India, offshore Sri Lanka, the Malacca Strait, and around Singapore—every single one is an idle empty ship. Why is this happening? The key reason is that Qatar's liquefied natural gas export plants have been shut down since March.

The backdrop is the situation in the Middle East. An Iranian drone attack led Qatar to shut down the world's largest LNG export plant, and then there was another attack that affected facilities at the Ras Laffan plant. Even more seriously, the Strait of Hormuz has been essentially closed, directly locking up the transport route for LNG ships. After the U.S. and Israel took action against Iran in late February, the whole situation became extremely tense.

As a result, these LNG ships have no cargo to move and no calls to take, so they can only stay out at sea and wait. This also reflects just how large the impact of this shock is. The global LNG industry is being pulled into it as well; some countries are being forced to reduce their LNG use. According to statistics from the industry organization GIIGNL, there are now more than 800 LNG ships in operation worldwide, and the idling of Qatar's 40-plus LNG ships is enough to show how serious the problem is.

This situation is unlikely to improve quickly in the short term unless there is a major shift in the Middle East situation. For the global energy market, this is a significant disruption.