The Middle East conflict is disrupting energy supplies, and Asian energy buyers are eager to secure energy supplies, competing to bid for fuel originally destined for other regions.
According to ship tracking data compiled by Bloomberg, five tankers loaded with diesel and aviation fuel have recently turned around mid-journey, changing their course from the originally planned westward route to East Asia. Three of the tankers are from India, while the other two left the Persian Gulf before the actual closure of the Strait of Hormuz last week.
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The supply crisis triggered by the Middle East conflict is causing structural shocks to the global energy market. As the world's largest energy-importing region, Asia is facing a double blow from the Middle East conflict and disruptions in Persian Gulf supplies. China has requested refineries to reduce exports, while in Africa, many gas stations are experiencing long queues.
The supply gap is quickly transmitting to the production side. Recently, due to crude oil shortages, many refineries in Asia have been forced to reduce output, pushing up refined oil prices in the region. Meanwhile, some advanced refineries in the Middle East have also cut production due to depleted inventories.
In addition, some Asian refineries had already scheduled maintenance plans before the conflict, and refinery procurement usually locks in sources based on maintenance cycles, making it difficult to flexibly increase production in the short term, further exacerbating the supply tightness.
Governments in multiple countries have begun to intensively introduce emergency policies, from releasing strategic reserves to limiting oil price increases, in an attempt to stabilize domestic energy markets.
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<h2>Tax cuts, price limits, sales restrictions, and reserve releases: countries urgently self-rescue</h2>
The Middle East conflict has triggered energy supply tightness in Asia, prompting many countries to urgently introduce response policies. Vietnam announced last Friday the cancellation of fuel import tariffs and granted the national oil group greater procurement flexibility to attract supplies, but retail prices have surged to the highest level since 2019, forcing dozens of gas stations in Hanoi to close or shorten operating hours.
South Korea has initiated its first oil price controls in nearly 30 years, with President Yoon Suk-yeol announcing a maximum price limit on petroleum products and plans to expand the scope of fuel tax reductions; Bangladesh is directly compressing demand by closing universities early and restricting fuel sales.
On the supply side, Japan has requested its national oil reserve bases to be prepared for releases, marking the clearest signal yet of utilizing reserves. Currently, the Japanese government holds about 260 million barrels of strategic reserves, equivalent to 204 days of imports, and the market is watching whether it will act independently of the International Energy Agency.
<h2>The scale of the Gulf impact far exceeds that of Russia-Ukraine, with Asia under the most pressure</h2>
The scale of this round of impact far exceeds previous ones. Market analysis estimates that the damage to Persian Gulf exports is close to 17 million barrels per day, approximately 17 times the peak loss of Russian supplies during the Russia-Ukraine conflict in 2022, and oil price volatility has surged to extreme levels exceeding 100
Goldman Sachs analysis shows that Asia, as the world's largest oil-importing region, is bearing uneven pressure from shocks. Under the assumption of an oil price of $85, the pressure on GDP growth has reached as high as 1.6 percentage points, while Brent crude oil has currently exceeded $100 per barrel, indicating that the actual impact may be deeper.
In this context, various Asian economies are responding to the same pressure with different tools. However, if high oil prices persist, whether the subsidy gap created by price controls can continue to be filled by government finances will become a core risk variable closely monitored by investors.
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The Middle East conflict has led to tight fuel supplies in Asia, with five oil tankers originally bound for Europe turning eastward to purchase fuel that was meant for other regions. Asia is facing a double blow from the Middle East hostilities and disruptions in the Persian Gulf supply, forcing refineries to reduce output and causing an increase in refined oil prices. Governments are urgently implementing policies in response, with Vietnam canceling fuel import tariffs, South Korea enforcing oil price controls, and Japan preparing to release strategic reserves. Market analysis indicates that the loss of exports from the Persian Gulf is close to 17 million barrels per day, with far-reaching impacts

- The ongoing conflict in the Middle East is disrupting energy supplies, prompting Asian buyers to compete for fuel originally destined for other regions.  
- Data shows that several tankers have changed course to East Asia, resulting in a structural shock to the global energy market, with prices rising and refinery operations affected due to supply shortages.  
- Governments across Asia are implementing emergency policies, such as lifting fuel import tariffs and price controls, amid concerns over sustained high oil prices that may strain public finances.

Fuel supply in Asia tightens, 5 tankers heading to Europe turn back eastward