Vietnam's trade ministry has issued an unprecedented call for businesses to encourage work-from-home arrangements as the Iran war drives fuel prices to crisis levels across Southeast Asia, exposing the region's vulnerability to Middle East supply disruptions.
Gasoline prices in the Southeast Asian nation have surged 32 percent, diesel by 56 percent, and kerosene by a staggering 80 percent since late February, according to data from Petrolimex, the country's top fuel trader. Long queues of cars and motorbikes snaked through Hanoi petrol stations on Tuesday as residents scrambled to fill tanks amid fears of further shortages.
The Ministry of Industry and Trade statement on Tuesday urged businesses to "encourage work-from-home when possible to reduce the need for travel and transportation," marking Vietnam's most dramatic policy response since the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran began disrupting global energy flows.
Vietnam has emerged as among the countries hardest hit by fuel disruptions, being heavily reliant on energy imports from the Middle East. The crisis threatens to slow the $430 billion economy just as manufacturers from Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan have been shifting production to the country from China.
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh made phone calls on Monday to his counterparts in Kuwait, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates to secure emergency supplies of fuels and crude oil, the government said. On the same day, Hanoi announced it would remove import tariffs on fuels through the end of April.
