Cleaves Securities believes seasonal highs and another La Nina weather event should boost LNG carriers this year.

In a "highly optimistic" reading of the market in the rest of 2021, the Norwegian investment bank has upgraded the sector from "sell" to "hold".

Despite the expected collapse in spot earnings, share prices have "skyrocketed" in concert with a highly active charter market, according to managing director and head of research Joakim Hannisdahl and equity research analyst Peter Michael Christensen.