As the war with Iran drags on, energy-starved nations in Asia –– including close US allies –– are resorting to increasingly extreme measures to keep their economies afloat.
On Tuesday, the Philippines became the first country to declare a state of national energy emergency. South Koreans have been advised to take shorter showers and charge their phones during the day to conserve electricity. While Japan will begin its biggest-ever release of emergency oil reserves this week, and told citizens there was no need to hoard toilet paper amid growing panic over potential shortages of consumer goods.
The intensifying upheaval is a grim indication of what may come for the rest of the world, as the war in Iran has choked off a critical source of crude oil and natural gas. Asian countries are heavily reliant on imports from the Middle East, which accounts for about 60% of the region’s oil supply.
After the US and Israel attacked Iran last month, Tehran effectively blocked the Strait of Hormuz, the only sea connection between the Persian Gulf and the Indian Ocean, restricting one-fifth of the world’s energy supply.
Energy research firm Wood Mackenzie predicted if the war continues, Brent oil prices could climb as high as $150 a barrel in the coming months, and warned an average price of $125 a barrel this year would trigger a global recession.
“With a geopolitical stalemate, a war drifting on and inventory outside the Gulf dwindling, prices across the entire crude and product complex will push up,” analysts wrote last week.
While President Trump is touting optimism the war may end soon, analysts have said even if a ceasefire came into effect, there will be months, if not years of economic pain ahead.
The conflict, now in its fourth week, has strained the commodity stockpiles that nations usually keep in reserve. The rising fuel prices have led airlines in Asia, including from Vietnam, the Philippines, Australia and the Pacific to suspend or curb flights.
While many countries are scrambling to secure more raw materials from the global market, the threat of running out has raised concerns about how shortages could trickle down through Asia’s manufacturing industry and ultimately make goods like electronics, cars and textiles more scarce.
‘Everything requires machinery’
A child walks along a hiking trail with oil storage tanks and facilities of CNOOC Ningbo Daxie Petrochemical Co., Ltd. in the background in Ningbo, China, March 21, 2026.Go Nakamura/Reuters
Some nations including China have restricted overseas shipments of fuel and other materials to safeguard their own domestic inventory.
South Korea is considering limiting exports of naphtha, a petroleum by-product used in plastics manufacturing, according to Yang Gi-wook, the country’s director of the industrial resource security office. A naphtha shortfall is also prompting production cuts at petrochemical companies in Japan.
Yang said the government is currently seeking other sources of naphtha, a shortage of which could affect the manufacturing of large home appliances like washing machines.
“If the situation is prolonged, we are also preparing stronger measures,” he said Tuesday.
Even if the war ends, halts in production and destruction to energy infrastructure will continue to weigh on oil and gas supply.
Last week the International Energy Agency said the historic release of 400 million barrels of crude stockpiles would not be enough to fix the energy crisis, and issued recommendations for curtailing demand such as avoiding air travel, switching to electric stoves and working from home.
Josh Kurlantzick, senior fellow for Southeast Asia and South Asia at the Council on Foreign Relations, warned that even as governments try to cap fuel prices and cut energy consumption, their ability to mitigate economic pain would be limited.
“You can turn down the air conditioning and ask people to take the steps but you just can’t pay for months for people’s fuel,” he said.
Some nations though have already turned to cash handouts to ease the immediate pain at the pump, with the Philippines offering subsidies for operators of public transport and New Zealand announcing $50 New Zealand dollar ($29) weekly payments to low-to-middle income working families.
In the rice fields outside the Thai capital Bangkok, farmer Theerasin told CNN that if the uncertainty over securing fuel continues, he would re-think planting his next crop in May.
“We are the producers. Simply put, being at the start of the chain, the production side gets hit first,” he told CNN.
“Fuel is the critical factor. We can’t plow or break the soil manually, we can’t use people to harvest by hand anymore, and we can’t manually scoop water into the fields. Everything requires machinery.”
Kocha Olarn and Laura Sharman contributed reporting
Asia embraces energy austerity as dire fuel shortages force Philippines to declare national emergency Egypt Independent.
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