European Gas Prices Surge as Trump Ends Iran Talks
European natural gas prices jumped 12% after Donald Trump abandoned diplomatic negotiations with Iran amid escalating military strikes in the Persian Gulf.
European wholesale natural gas prices surged 12% in one week, with Dutch and British contracts hitting one-week highs on November 13, 2026. The price spike follows a collapse in diplomatic efforts after Donald Trump announced that Washington no longer required an agreement with Tehran and ordered Vice President JD Vance to abandon negotiations.
This diplomatic breakdown coincided with increased military volatility in the Persian Gulf. Houthi forces conducted attacks on Saudi facilities and crude tankers, while the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed to have targeted a U.S. early-warning radar in Bahrain. The IRGC stated the strike was retaliation for an alleged air attack on a telecommunications tower in Iran's Hormozgan province.
Despite European gas storage being 71% full, traders are pricing in a severe geopolitical risk premium. There are growing fears that a regional war could disrupt liquefied natural gas transit routes during the winter heating season, while the United States maintains a strict naval blockade of Iranian trade and oil shipments.
