MANILA: Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said on Tuesday he was open to talks with Beijing on energy exploration in the South China Sea, as he declared a state of emergency over fuel supplies in the wake of the Iran war. The US and Israeli attacks on Iran, which started on Feb. 28, have caused the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz through which most of Asia’s energy supply transits. The Philippines depends almost entirely on the Middle East for its crude oil imports.

MANILA: Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said on Tuesday he was open to talks with Beijing on energy exploration in the South China Sea, as he declared a state of…

President’s declaration allows officials to tackle fuel hoarding or profiteering, while energy secretary says country will lean more heavily on coal