As the Iran conflict stretches into its fourth week, fuel security and supply rise to the top as the most pressing issues for the Southeast Asian travel industry.

Laos suffers the most this week, with diesel prices up 50%, and the government's announcements to reduce fuel consumption, including shortening the school week from 5 to 3 days and a raft of other guidelines for civil servants.

Meanwhile, the Philippines announced price hikes for local transportation like jeepneys, which were then immediately backtracked by the President before their implementation.

Fears of fuel shortages trigger runs on fuel stations in Thailand, leading Malaysia to warn Malaysians against travel to Southern Thailand over the Eid holidays unless they have a full petrol tank first.

SIA cancels its flights to Dubai, PAL announces the suspension of its flights to key Middle East hubs including Dubai and Doha, until 30 Apr.

Two new flight routes announced lift hope for SE Asia as a viable alternative transit hub: British Airways to start flying London-Kuala Lumpur-Melbourne, whilst Vietjet launches bi-weekly Hanoi-Almaty-Prague route from Jul.

Pear Anderson is a boutique tourism industry consultancy firm, experts in Southeast Asian tourism. We partner across the spectrum of tourism-related organisations to build a lasting foundation in the region, through consulting and sales representation.

pearanderson.com