The US-Israeli war on Iran threatens global energy. How is Asia preparing?
China, Japan and South Korea have all taken steps to reduce impact of supply shortages – but analysts warn of spillover
Under mounting economic pressure and record oil market volatility, Trump said on Monday that the US-Israeli war on Iran could be over “very soon”, though not within the coming week.
The most exposed Asian economies – including South Korea and Japan – are heavily dependent on the Middle East for about 50 per cent of their energy imports, and some are moving to cushion themselves from turbulence.
China, the world’s second-largest oil consumer, has announced its sharpest rise in retail petrol and diesel prices since 2022, while ordering state-owned oil majors to secure stable supplies of refined products and comply with official price controls.
Japan and South Korea are also preparing defensive measures. With oil reserves covering 254 days, Tokyo had instructed national storage sites to prepare for a possible release, local news agency Kyodo News reported on Sunday.
Tokyo previously released oil during the Gulf war in the early 1990s and again following the earthquake and tsunami in northeast Japan in 2011, according to the report.