Cheniere Sags on Surprise $3.5 Billion Loss on Derivatives

Cheniere Energy Inc. plunged almost 10% after posting a surprise $3.5 billion loss driven by a drop in the value of hedges as the Iran war upended natural gas markets.

The US gas exporter cited “unfavorable variances related to changes in the fair value of our derivative instruments” for the first-quarter loss, according to a statement Thursday. All 14 analysts in a Bloomberg survey had been expecting Cheniere to post positive net income.