East Asian LNG-supply squeeze.
prob 0.45
severity 3.3 / 5 · revision 2026-05-09watch · 5 East Asian economies · LNG + power$ shortage country get KOR > stress_index: 0.52 WATCH > 1 events · 1 scenarios > refreshed 2026-05-17
BRENT $72.13/b ● TTF €44.25/MWh ● OPEC_ORB n/a SPR_US 331.2 Mb ▼ FAO_FFPI 130.8 ▼
The v3.2 stress index is a six-axis composite of energy and food exposure, geopolitical pressure, fiscal headroom, demography and supply concentration, normalised to a 0–1 scale.
South Korea imports almost all of its energy — crude, LNG and coal — to power a heavily industrial, export-driven economy and a major refining base. It maintains the IEA-mandated strategic oil cover. Very low cereal self-sufficiency leaves it acutely dependent on food imports.
South Korea faces recurrent regional drought that lowers the reservoirs supplying water and power.
| STOCK TYPE | RESERVE | DAYS COVER | STATUS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oil · strategic and commercial reserveKNOC and industry hold the IEA-mandated strategic oil cover plus a large refining base. | ~100 days | 100days | STABLE |
| Natural gas · LNG-dependent supplyGas is supplied through LNG terminals; storage is modest against winter demand. | import-based | 20days | WATCH |
| Grain · government rice and wheat stocksGovernment rice stocks are substantial, but wheat and feed grain are overwhelmingly imported. | moderate | 80days | WATCH |
$ curl -s https://api.shortage.life/v1/countries/KOR | jq '.stress' > 0.52