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Refueling a car in Santiago, Chile.
A worker refuels a vehicle at a gas station in Santiago, Chile, on Tuesday, March 24, 2026. Chile's government will hike fuel prices by as much as 54% on Thursday, stoking expectations for a steep rebound in inflation and triggering a wave of panic buying at gasoline stations across the country.

Cristobal Olivares/Bloomberg via Getty Images

  • Energy costs are rising globally due to the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
  • Gas price hikes have sparked panic-buying and shortages in China, Chile, and Thailand.
  • The Philippines was the first country to declare a "national energy emergency."

Iran's blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, through which a quarter of global seaborne oil and a fifth of global liquefied natural gas is shipped, has had sweeping implications worldwide.

Rising gas prices amid the Iran war have sparked panic-buying lines and shortages at gas pumps. Other supply chains, such as fertilizer and seafood, could also be in peril.

"Past crises — including COVID-19 and the war in Ukraine — showed how disruptions to energy, transport, and agricultural inputs can quickly spread across interconnected markets," the UN Conference on Trade and Development wrote in a report released March 10.

Here's how countries and consumers around the world are feeling the effects of the Iran war.

On Sunday, motorists in Suzhou in eastern China lined up to fill their tanks ahead of an announced gas price hike.
Cars line up for gas in China.
Motorists queue to fill their tanks ahead of a petrol price adjustment expected on March 23, at a petrol station in Suzhou, in China's eastern Jiangsu province on March 22, 2026.

CN-STR/AFP via Getty Images

China's National Development and Reform Commission had initially announced that the set average price of gas would rise from $4.20 a gallon to $5.10 a gallon, an increase of 90 cents, The New York Times reported. On Monday, the agency said the planned increase would be lowered to 50 cents, bringing the price to $4.70 a gallon.

Customers in Santiago, Chile, also rushed to gas stations on Tuesday ahead of a 54% increase in fuel prices.
Cars line up for gas in Chile.
Customers wait in line to fuel up vehicles at a gas station in Santiago, Chile, on Tuesday, March 24, 2026. Chile's government will hike fuel prices by as much as 54% on Thursday, stoking expectations for a steep rebound in inflation and triggering a wave of panic buying at gasoline stations across the country.

Cristobal Olivares/Bloomberg/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Jorge Quiroz, Chile's finance minister, announced that the price hikes would take effect on Thursday, sparking panic buying as vehicle owners sought to fill their tanks before the change.

In Bangkok, gas stations faced fuel shortages.
Empty signs on gas pumps in Thailand.
BANGKOK, THAILAND - 2026/03/16: Several gas stations across Bangkok have reported temporary fuel shortages, with "out of stock" and "awaiting delivery" signs posted at pumps. The crisis stems from escalating military tensions between the U.S., Israel, and Iran, which have severely disrupted global energy supplies and caused the national Oil Fund to plummet. This geopolitical instability has sparked widespread panic buying and fuel hoarding among the public, leading to localized shortages. Consequently, rising transportation costs are now trickling down to consumer goods, driving up prices and causing nationwide economic distress.

Arnun Chonmahatrakool/Thai New/Thai News Pix/LightRocket via Getty Images

Some pumps featured signs reading "out of stock" or "awaiting delivery."

In some parts of Los Angeles, gas prices exceeded $8 per gallon.
Gas over $8 per gallon in Los Angeles.
Los Angeles, CA - March 19: A gas station on Thursday, March 19, 2026 in Los Angeles, CA

Eric Thayer/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

As of March 25, the average price per gallon of regular gasoline in California was $5.831, according to AAA. The national average across the US was $3.983 per gallon.

Gas prices in California are typically higher than the rest of the country due to state taxes, stricter environmental regulations, including "cleaner" gas blends, and limited supply compared to other areas of the country.

Porter Airlines announced on Monday that it would institute a temporary fuel surcharge on some flights.
Porter Airlines planes at an airport.
TORONTO, ON- MARCH 23 - Porter Airlines announced that due to the recent rise in global fuel prices, they are introducing a temporary fuel surcharge on all VIPorter flight redemptions. in Toronto. March 23, 2026. This adjustment will be applied as a 'Peak Surcharge' to each passenger, each way. This update goes into effect for all new VIPorter flight bookings as of March 23, 2026 - any existing bookings are unaffected. Steve Russell/Toronto Star

Steve Russell/Toronto Star via Getty Images

On flights booked with loyalty points through the Canadian airline's VIPorter redemption program, Porter began charging a $40 peak surcharge for flights within North America and an $86 fee per leg for international flights.

"We want to be transparent about why this change is necessary," Porter wrote in an email to customers. "Fuel represents the highest cost of airline operations and this surcharge allows us to maintain the number of points required for redemption."

President Ferdinand Marcos of the Philippines declared a state of "national energy emergency" on Tuesday.
Philippine President Ferdinand Bongbong Marcos Jr. greets passengers on a bus.
Philippine President Ferdinand Bongbong Marcos, Jr (C) visits the Paranaque Integrated Terminal Exchange (PITX) to personally oversee the initial rollout of fuel subsidies for public utility vehicles (PUVs) and ensure that the distribution process is smooth and well-organized in Metro Manila, Philippines on March 24, 2026. With rising fuel prices, the government continues to provide financial assistance to drivers and operators of PUVs. The initiative is part of the PhP2.5-billion allocation for PUVs under the Department of Transportation (DOTr) Fuel Subsidy Project. Under the program, bus operators receive PhP10,000 per unit, while drivers are entitled to PhP5,000 each.

Philippine Presidential Com. Office/Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images

The executive order stated that the war in the Middle East had resulted in "imminent danger posed upon the availability and stability of the country's energy supply."

The Philippines also rolled out fuel subsidies for public utility vehicles to help them absorb climbing costs.

Street vendors in New Delhi have switched to electric, coal, wood, and kerosene stoves amid a shortage of LPG gas cylinders.
A tea seller uses a coal stove in New Delhi.
NEW DELHI, INDIA - MARCH 22: A tea seller use coal stove due to shortage of LPG Gas cylinder at Tank Road Karol Bagh, on March 22, 2026 in New Delhi, India. The crisis, triggered by the ongoing West Asia conflict and the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, has forced thousands of Delhi's street vendors and dhaba owners to abandon gas burners for Electirc coal, wood, or kerosene stoves.

Ishant Chauhan/Hindustan Times via Getty Images

Amid the shortage of liquefied petroleum gas, which is used across India for everyday cooking, a tea seller on Tank Road in Karol Bagh, New Delhi, was photographed heating up tea using a coal stove on Sunday. Many eateries in the country have had to scale back their menus or close completely.

Some fishing vessels in Thailand have halted operations due to the prohibitively high cost of boat fuel.
Docked fishing boats in Narathiwat Province, Thailand.
Docked fishing boats in Narathiwat Province, Thailand.

Ploy Phutpheng/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

About 40% of Thailand's 9,000 registered fishing vessels have paused operations, a Thai official told the Bangkok Post.

The reduction in fishing is expected to push up seafood costs. Seafood vendors have already raised prices of some items by 5 to 20 baht, or between around 15 and 61 cents, per kilogram, according to The National Fisheries Association of Thailand.

The closure of the Strait of Hormuz has also raised concerns about global fertilizer supply shortages affecting food security and prices.
A Kashmiri farmer sprinkles fertilizer.
Aaqib Ahmad, 23, a Kashmiri farmer, sprinkles fertilizer near a mustard field on the outskirts of Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, on March 22, 2026. The ongoing Iran-Israel conflict has disrupted Middle East fertilizer supplies, with up to 30% of global urea shipments at risk due to closures and military operations around the Strait of Hormuz. This situation is increasing global prices, affecting crop yields in the Northern Hemisphere, and adding pressure on global food security.

Firdous Nazir/NurPhoto via Getty Images

About one-third of the global seaborne fertilizer trade passes through the Strait of Hormuz, according to a report released by the UN Conference on Trade and Development on March 10.

The report added that the shipping disruption is "raising concerns about ripple effects across global markets."

Raw materials shortages have also affected plastic film factories.
A plastic film factory worker in South Korea.
An employee works at a plastic film factory in Ansan, South Korea, March 25, 2026. Plastic film factory suffer from unstable polyethylene supply amid the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Ansan.

Kim Hong-Ji/REUTERS

A plastic film factory in Ansan, South Korea, reduced its output from 100 tons per day to 20 to 30 tons per day due to unstable supplies of the polyethylene needed for production, its manager, Choi Gun-soo, told Reuters.

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From panic buying in Chile to $8 gas in California, photos show how people arou…