Asia / Pacific

The oil prices are soaring, while the share market is tumbling on the fear that the escalating U.S./Israeli war against Iran will cut energy'supplies and hamstring industry?all over the world. The following?are?actions?that governments are taking, or plan to take?to reduce the impact of war on their economies. SOUTH KOREAN PLANS FUEL CAPITAL South Korean President Lee Jae Myung announced?on?Monday that the authorities will cap domestic fuel prices?for?the first?time in almost 30 years. He said that the country would also "look for energy sources beyond those shipped through the Strait of Hormuz" and a 100 trillion won (67 billion dollars) programme...

The majority of 'Gulf' stock markets were up in the early trade on Sunday. The Saudi index was up for a fifth consecutive session after the?Iranian?temporary governing council agreed to stop attacks on neighboring nations, unless they originated on their own territory. Saudi Arabia told Tehran it supports a diplomatic solution to Iran's conflict with the U.S. but that continued attacks against the kingdom and its energy sector may push Riyadh into a similar response, according to sources. Saudi Arabia's benchmark.TASI index rose 2%. All of its constituents posted?gains led by energy and material stocks. Brent oil prices surged on...

Donald Trump stated on Saturday that Britain was "seriously considering" sending two aircraft carriers to the Middle East. He added, however, that the United States would not be sending any. The United States does not need these aircraft carriers to win the war against Iran in the latest conflict between military allies. Trump has repeatedly criticized British Prime Minister Keir starmer, suggesting that he "ruined" the historically close relationship between the two countries after London refused to allow the U.S. The initial use of British base to attack Iran was criticised by Trump. Trump wrote on?Truth Social that he would...

Pakistan raised prices for petrol and diesel by?about 20% on Friday, citing a rise in oil prices due to the conflict in Iran. In a video message broadcast on television, Ali Pervaiz Malik, the Petroleum Minister announced an increase of 55 rupees ($0.20 per liter) for diesel and petrol to 321.17 rupiahs. The minister stated that the sharp rise in global petroleum prices forced them to make this decision. This decision will likely lead to higher inflation in Pakistan and affect the country's poor population. Fuel stations in major cities such as Lahore and Karachi were crowded with people before...

Asian energy buyers are scrambling for alternatives, as the Iran War creates an unprecedented disruption in supply. However, the region's options to reduce its heavy dependence on Middle Eastern oil are limited. The top crude-importing region in the world buys 60% its oil and petrochemicals feedstocks from 'the Middle East.' This war, which began with a slew of israeli and american attacks on Iran a week ago, has driven up?global fuel prices and threatened to hurt economic growth. Refiners in Southeast Asia, China, and other parts of Asia, are unable to get Middle Eastern crude. They are forced to look...

Bloomberg News reported on Friday that the 'Trump administration has ruled out using the Treasury Department to trade oil futures for the time being, citing an individual familiar with the issue. The report stated that officials discussed getting the Treasury Department to get involved but believed its ability meaningfully to affect the market was limited. The global oil prices have increased since the war began with Iran on Saturday, as the conflict has disrupted Middle East supply. Prices fell on Thursday, the first time since six days. This was due to reports that the U.S. The U.S. may intervene on...

Indian shares fell Friday, with losses mainly in financial stocks. Investors remained cautious amid the U.S.-Israeli conflict against Iran that has pushed up oil prices and weakened global risk appetite. As of 10:05 am IST, the BSE Sensex fell 0.61% and was down to 79530.73. The Nifty 50 was also down by 0.59%. The conflict has raised fears that a wider energy supply shock could further increase crude prices, revive inflation pressures and cloud the global economic outlook. The dollar strengthened as the conflict continued to show no signs of abating. Brent crude rose 5% on Thursday to a 20...

The president of the European Bank for Reconstruction and 'Development, said 'on Thursday that the widening U.S. -Iran conflict is a threat... to economic growth. But the impact will depend on the length of the conflict. Odile Renaud Basso, EBRD President, said in an interview with the Istanbul press that conflict can "reduce risk capital" in the region. However, he added that the fallout has been contained so far - except for Lebanon. She said that the risk was on the downside. The EBRD estimated growth in the 41 countries that it covers as 3.6% this year, and 3.7% in...

The UK's hesitant response to the Middle East conflict and reluctance to defend its allies have renewed doubts about the military effectiveness of the country, especially when the U.S. demands widespread rearmament. Trump slammed Keir starmer, the British Prime Minister on Tuesday. He said that he had "ruined" their historically close relationship when London refused to allow the U.S. to use British bases for pre-emptive attacks on Iran. Cypriot officials have also criticised London for sending a drone made in Iran to strike one of Britain's bases on the island. This prompted France, Greece, and other countries to offer support....

Sources say that Iranian Kurdish militias are consulting with the U.S. on whether and how to attack Iran's Security Forces in Western Iran as the U.S., Israel and other countries continue their military campaign against Tehran. Kurds were left stateless when the Ottoman Empire collapsed and the boundaries of the modern Middle East emerged. History In the 1890s, when the Ottoman empire was in its final days, a Kurdish nationalist movement erupted. In 1920, the Treaty of Sevres - which imposed a colonial division of Turkey following World War One - promised independence to Kurdish people. Three years later Mustafa...

Wesfarmers, the chemical and fertiliser division within the 'Australian conglomerate Wesfarmers, said on Thursday that it was possible some shipments of ammonium-phosphate cropping compound and urea could be delayed primarily due to?the Iran war. CSBP stated that it was "urgently assessing" its inventory levels and other supply options. The escalating conflict in the Middle East is causing shipping routes to be severely disrupted, which could limit supplies for 'key Asian importers as they prepare their cereal planting season. The company, based in Perth, is one of Australia's largest fertiliser suppliers. Western Australia has a strong agricultural sector and exports wheat....

CEO Flemming Ornskov stated on Thursday that 'Galderma continues to see the Middle East as a 'attractive market. The conflict in the region is unlikely to have any major impact on the Swiss skincare firm because it only represents a small part of their business. Ornskov stated that less than 2% (of Galderma's) business is currently located in the Middle East. However, the company has made efforts to expand in this region, highlighting its recent entry into Saudi Arabia, and expansion in United Arab Emirates. He said that Galderma was pursuing its plans in the region, citing that there were...

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung announced on Monday that the government would cap domestic gasoline prices for the first time in nearly 30 years to contain a price spike after the Middle East conflict sent global crude oil prices sharply higher. At an emergency meeting to discuss the Middle East Crisis, Lee stated that the government would "boldly and swiftly" implement a maximum pricing system on petroleum products which have seen recent price increases. In his opening remarks, Lee stated that the current crisis is "a significant burden" on our economy which is heavily dependent on global trade as...

On Sunday, Trump administration officials defended the 'decision' to temporarily lift sanctions on Russian oil and predicted that gasoline prices would spike sharply in response to the Iran War. Chris Wright, the Energy Secretary of the United States and U.S. The Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz stated that a waiver granted last week allowing Indians to purchase Russian oil will ease pressure on the global markets. Waltz told NBC's 'Meet 'the Press' that the 30-day pause would allow millions of barrels of crude oil, sitting on ships, to be sent to Indian refineries. Wright said on CNN's "State...

The U.S./Israel war on Iran caused a disruption in crude and feedstock imports from the Middle East, forcing several Asian refineries and companies to declare force majeure and cut back production. Asian steam crackers have declared force majeure on petrochemical deliveries to customers, despite sourcing more than 60% of their feedstock for naphtha from the Middle East. Three operators said they were reducing run rates in order to carry over some of the feedstock they have into next month. This will allow them to keep their plants operating and avoid shutting down even if they don't get enough imports. Two...

A government order revealed that India has invoked emergency powers to increase production of LPG in order to prevent a shortage after supply disruptions caused by the Middle East Crisis. Last year, the world's second largest importer of LPG consumed 33.15 millions metric tons of LPG. This is a mixture between propane and butane. About two-thirds (or 85-90%) of LPG is imported, and most of it comes from the Middle East. The order, issued late Thursday night, asked all oil refiners to "maximise their propane and butane supplies and use them for the production of LPG". The government has asked...

The price of heavy crude oil produced in Americas reached multi-year-highs on Wednesday as a result of the U.S. and Israeli attacks against Iran, which slowed down the exports similar oil produced elsewhere in the Middle East. Brent crude is at its highest level since January 2025, and benchmark crude oil has surged ever since the first attacks last week. Iran has threatened that it will fire at any vessel passing through the'shipping lanes' of the Strait of Hormuz near its southern coast as a retaliation to the U.S. and Israeli attacks. This has effectively shut down the Strait of...

Two traders reported that India's Mangalore Refinery & Petrochemicals declared force majeure for all future gasoline export cargoes due to the Middle East conflict, which has disrupted crude oil shipments from the Gulf. One of the traders stated that the company has already allocated two to three loads via tenders, for loading in early March. It is currently negotiating with buyers about these supplies. The trader said that MRPL has swap agreements with traders for receiving crude cargoes and supplying'refined fuel. The state-run refiner, which runs a 300,000-barrel-per-day refinery in the ?southern state of Karnataka, exports about 40% of its...

The expectation that the Federal Reserve will resume interest rate 'cuts' before September has eroded on Tuesday as rising oil prices due to the U.S. - Israel air war against Iran have heightened concerns?that inflation would keep the central bank in an hawkish position. After the air strike against Tehran that took out the country's "long-time" leader, interest rate futures and Treasury bonds saw a surge in sales for the second day running. The Strait of Hormuz is closed to all traffic, and the flow of 20 percent of the world's oil has been effectively stopped for an indefinite period...

Rubio, the Secretary of State for the United States, said that the U.S. would 'take action' to tame the rising energy prices caused by a surge in oil prices as a result of the conflict with Iran. Rubio told reporters on Capitol Hill that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Energy secretary Chris Wright will announce the plans Tuesday. Rubio stated that "starting tomorrow, you'll see us roll out those phases in an effort to mitigate against this... We anticipated this could be a problem." According to his itinerary, President Donald Trump will meet Bessent and Wright on Tuesday at 2...

OPEC+'s decision to increase crude oil production by 206,000 barrels a day (bpd), starting in April, is likely?the most unimportant decision that the group has taken during its nearly decade-long existence. Addition of 0.2% to global oil demand in a month is nothing more than a symbol in light of the escalating conflict in the Middle East that is already causing serious disruptions in supply. There was not much the 'eight members' of OPEC+ who are voluntarily cutting production could have done if they had met on Sunday in order to reassure the market that the supply would be secure....

According to four sources who are familiar with the talks, the United States has slowed down the sale of the international assets of the 'Russian oil giant Lukoil to put pressure on Russia during the Ukraine peace negotiations. A document reviewed by OFAC showed that the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) will extend to Thursday the deadline for deals to be completed from February 28 to April 1. In recent weeks, U.S. and Russian government officials failed to make a breakthrough during talks in Geneva and Abu Dhabi, or in Miami, in order to negotiate a deal for...

China's role in setting the floor and ceiling prices for crude oil is one of the less discussed dynamics of the global market. The world's biggest crude?importer is known to buy excess oil and build up inventories when the refiners or government consider prices to be low. They also pull back imports when they feel that prices are rising too quickly. Analysts and journalists covering the crude oil market are not aware of the changes in imports because they occur with a delay of several months. There are early signs, however, that China will shift its imports in favor of...

LSEG data on Thursday showed that Singapore's light distillate stocks reached a'record high this week. This was due to a 'deep contango -structure of?gasoline price, which encouraged storing amid lower demand. In a contango-structure, the prices for immediate delivery are lower than those for future deliveries. Enterprise Singapore released data showing that Singapore's oil products onshore inventory, held by up to 14 major oil companies and oil storage firms, rose by 1.496 millions barrels during the week ending February 18. The contango in the gasoline market is so deep that everyone would like to "roll" (sell their current positions to...