53 Days of Gasoline. 46 Days of Diesel.
President Marcos declared a national energy emergency on Tuesday. The Philippines imports 95 to 98 percent of its oil from the Middle East. The Strait of Hormuz has been blockaded since February 28.
They have 53 days of gasoline, 46 days of diesel, 38 days of jet fuel, and 23 days of LPG. After that, the lights go out.
The First Domino
The Philippines is the first country to formally declare an emergency because of the Iran war. It will not be the last. Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh face similar dependency. Cuba has already collapsed three times this month.
The global energy system assumed Hormuz would always be open. That assumption died on February 28.
What Manila Is Doing
Four-day work week for government offices. State-run PNOC sourcing 2 million barrels of emergency oil. An interagency UPLIFT committee chaired by the president.
These are wartime measures from a country not at war. The Philippines is a US treaty ally whose energy crisis is a direct consequence of a war it did not start.
The Pattern
Asia is embracing energy austerity. Japan Nikkei fell 4 percent. KOSPI dropped 6 percent. The IEA says this crisis surpassed the 1970s oil shocks.
Watch for more emergency declarations. Each one is a data point that the Iran war is no longer contained to the Middle East.
