JKM

JKM (Japan Korea Marker) is a price benchmark for LNG cargoes delivered to Northeast Asia, covering the region's biggest LNG importers, Japan and South Korea.

JKM prices LNG cargoes delivered to Japan and South Korea, historically the two largest LNG-importing countries and still among the biggest buyers of any gas benchmark worldwide. Unlike a pipeline-based benchmark, JKM reflects the cost of a cargo that could, in principle, have been sold to a buyer anywhere with import capacity, since LNG tankers can redirect to whichever market is paying the most.

That flexibility links JKM to gas benchmarks on the other side of the world. When a cold winter or a supply outage pushes European buyers to bid aggressively for LNG, cargoes can be diverted away from Asia toward Europe, pulling JKM and TTF toward each other even though they sit half a world apart. JKM is quoted per MMBtu, the same unit used for other gas benchmarks.