LIVE UPDATES: Conflict in the Middle East (April 30, 2026)

Iran said on Thursday it would respond with "long and painful strikes" on US positions if Washington renewed attacks, and also reasserted its control over the Strait of Hormuz, complicating US plans for a coalition to reopen the waterway.

US President Donald Trump is slated to receive a briefing on Thursday on plans for a series of fresh military strikes on Iran. This spurred big gains in oil prices, with the benchmark Brent crude contract hitting more than $126 a barrel at one point. It later slipped back to around $113 a barrel.

 Asian countries will need to keep their powder dry in preparation for future shocks even as they tackle an energy crisis caused by the Iran War, IMF Director for Asia Pacific Krishna Srinivasan said on Thursday.

With energy supplies running short due to the logjam in the Strait of Hormuz, southeast Asian economies have budgeted significant sums to cushion the impact of surging prices, and have also introduced measures to conserve energy, including work from home plans.

Srinivasan also noted that some markets, such as the Philippines, have decided to tighten preemptively to anchor inflation expectations, but he added that the IMF's advice would have been to see through the shock and wait to see if inflation really picks up in a meaningful way.

Inflation, which measures the rate of increase in the prices of goods and services, is expected to accelerate beyond the government’s comfortable ceiling in April amid cost pressures brought by the global oil crisis.

In its month-ahead inflation forecast, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said inflation rate would settle at the range of 5.6% to 6.4% this month, faster than the 4.1% rate seen in March.

The Department of Energy (DOE) on Thursday said it has coordinated with the Philippine National Oil Company (PNOC) to provide cheaper fuel to power plants to prevent possible rotational brownouts in off-grid areas.

The Department of Energy (DOE) on Thursday warned that removing renewable energy charges from electricity bills could lead to reduced power supply and fewer clean energy projects in the country.

WASHINGTON/DUBAI/ISLAMABAD — Donald Trump discussed how to mitigate the impact of a possible months-long US blockade of Iran's ports with oil companies, a White House official said on Wednesday, as the US president urged Tehran to "get smart soon" and sign a deal.

Tuesday's talks with oil executives followed a deadlock in efforts to resolve the conflict, which has led the United States to try to squeeze Iran's oil exports with a naval blockade aimed at forcing it to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to shipping.

While Washington and Tehran traded public threats, mediator Pakistan was trying to avoid escalation while the two sides continue to exchange messages on a potential deal, a Pakistani source told Reuters on Wednesday.

The Department of Energy (DOE) on Thursday said there is a possible increase in oil prices in the coming week, citing the continued weakening of the Philippine peso against the US dollar.

DOE Secretary Sharon Garin said early trends in global oil trading suggest an upward adjustment in pump prices, although only a few days of trading data have been observed so far.

“Mukhang yung trend so far, sa bagay tatlong araw pa lang. Pero mukhang paakyat siya. So baka may oil price hike tayo next week,” Garin told GMA News’ Unang Balita in an interview.

(It seems to be the trend so far, but it's only been three days. but, yes, it looks like it's going up. So, maybe we'll have an oil price hike next week.)

U.S. President Donald Trump said in an interview with Axios on Wednesday that he has told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that Israel should only take "surgical" military action in Lebanon and avoid a full resumption of the war. —Reuters