PRESIDENT Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. said Wednesday, June 25, 2025, that the ongoing conflict between Iran and Israel has no significant effect on the country’s economy.
“We looked at it and [we analyzed] paanong mangyayari and nakita natin na the effect on the economy should be manageable…So far there’s no significant effect on the economy,” Marcos told reporters.
“Iyon lamang binabantayan natin ngayon 'yung price gouging. Dahil ang dami ko nang nakita nagtataas ng presyo, hindi naman tumaas ang presyo ng langis. So, iyon ang babantayan natin ngayon. That's what we are going to watch,” he added.
(What we're closely watching now is price gouging. I've seen many raising prices even though oil prices haven't gone up. So that's what we'll be monitoring now.)
On Tuesday, June 24, President Marcos met with his economic team as well as officials of the Department of Energy (DOE), where they discussed the impact of the prevailing Iran-Israel conflict.
Also present during the inter-agency meeting were Finance Secretary Ralph Recto, Special Assistant for Investment and Economic Affairs Secretary Frederick Go, and officials from the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Department of Labor and Employment.
In a press conference, DOE officer-in-charge Sharon Garin said Department of Economy, Planning, and Development (DEPDev) Secretary Arsenio Balisacan assessed that the ongoing tensions in the Middle East have a minimal and non-alarming impact on the country’s economy and energy supply.
Among the factors considered were oil price fluctuations, trade and export dynamics, and the effect on remittances from overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), especially those in the Middle East.
Garin said all concerned agencies are actively monitoring the situation and are prepared to act if conditions change.
For this week alone, petroleum firms implemented, on a staggered basis, a total price increase of P3.50 per liter for gasoline, P5.20 per liter for diesel, and P4.80 per liter for kerosene.
The ongoing conflict between Iran and Israel may potentially affect the flow of shipping and crude oil through the Strait of Hormuz, a critical passageway for the global energy market, which could drive oil prices upward and impact the global economy.
The Strait of Hormuz serves as a conduit for nearly one-third of the world’s seaborne oil and about one-fifth of global liquefied natural gas (LNG) shipments.
In a bid to cushion the impact of any oil price shocks, Garin said the Marcos administration has assured its preparedness to provide subsidies to public utility vehicle (PUV) drivers and operators, as well as farmers and fisherfolk.
“Ang utos pa rin ng Presidente is we make sure that we protect the Filipino people from the impact of the oil price hike, most especially those na gumagamit ng public utility vehicles, our farmers, and our fisherfolks,” she said.
(The President’s directive remains the same: to ensure that we protect the Filipino people from the impact of the oil price hike, especially those who use public utility vehicles, as well as our farmers and fisherfolk.)
Garin said there is a total allocation of P2.5 billion in subsidies for PUV drivers and operators, while P600 million has been allocated under the General Appropriations Act to support farmers and fisherfolk. The funds will be disbursed once the signal is given to concerned government agencies such as the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Transportation.
She said the country is adequately prepared in terms of oil supply, noting that oil companies have an average buffer stock of around 28 to 30 days.
Should the tension escalate, she added the Philippines can consider other suppliers from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec), as well as non-Middle Eastern sources such as the United States, Canada, and Brazil, as viable alternatives for oil and other petroleum products. (TPM/SunStar Philippines)