ADVERTISEMENT
Manila Bulletin devider Business devider Banking & Finance devider ADB readying up to $1.75 billion more for Philippines amid Middle East crisis

ADB readying up to $1.75 billion more for Philippines amid Middle East crisis

Published May 15, 2026 12:14 pm

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is prepared to provide up to $1.75 billion in additional financing to help the Philippines, its host country, manage the economic fallout from the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

In a statement on Friday, May 15, the Manila-based multilateral lender said ADB president Masato Kanda met with President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. at Malacañan Palace, where the bank expressed readiness to extend further support to cushion the impact of elevated oil prices and broader global commodity shocks on the Philippine economy.

“The Philippines is the ADB’s home, and we see the strain this crisis is placing on Filipino families, workers, and businesses,” Kanda said.

“The ADB will act swiftly to support the government to protect vulnerable communities, manage fiscal pressures, and strengthen the economy’s resilience,” he added.

The ADB noted that the Philippines has been heavily affected by the Middle East conflict due to its reliance on imported oil, fertilizers, and other global commodities.

The government earlier declared a national energy emergency and rolled out the Unified Package for Livelihoods, Industry, Food, and Transport (UPLIFT), which includes fuel subsidies, excise tax reductions on certain oil products, and cash assistance for transport workers, farmers, fishers, and repatriated overseas Filipino workers (OFWs).

According to the ADB, the proposed support package may include additional policy-based and countercyclical lending, as well as trade finance if necessary, to help the government provide assistance to vulnerable sectors and mitigate the impact of oil supply disruptions and other economic shocks.

The planned financing is on top of around $2 billion in policy-based loans already being prepared by the ADB for the Philippines this year.

The ADB said it is also coordinating with government agencies on longer-term measures aimed at strengthening economic resilience and protecting vulnerable sectors.

These include advisory support to the Department of Agriculture (DA) on domestic fertilizer security, assistance to the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) on social protection, and support for energy security, clean energy, energy efficiency, and mass transit investments to reduce the country’s exposure to fuel-price shocks.

To recall, Kanda, in response to Manila Bulletin’s question during a press conference on the sidelines of the ADB’s 59th Annual Meeting in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, last week, said that the lender had already received “so many requests from so many countries” seeking financial support as the Middle East conflict drives up oil, fertilizer, freight, and food costs globally.

During the annual meeting, Department of Finance (DOF) Undersecretary Joven Z. Balbosa also urged the ADB to strengthen support for developing member countries (DMCs) facing climate-related and geopolitical shocks, warning that the Philippines and other economies are navigating an increasingly complex global environment marked by disruptions in supply chains, energy markets, and trade flows. - Ben Arnold de Vera

Related Tags

Asian Development Bank (ADB) Masato Kanda Ferdinand Bongbong Marcos Jr. Joven Z. Balbosa Department of Finance (DOF)
ADVERTISEMENT
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1561_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1562_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1563_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}

{{ articles_filter_1564_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.mb-article-details { position: relative; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview, .mb-article-details .article-body-summary{ font-size: 17px; line-height: 30px; font-family: "Libre Caslon Text", serif; color: #000; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview iframe , .mb-article-details .article-body-summary iframe{ width: 100%; margin: auto; } .read-more-background { background: linear-gradient(180deg, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0) 13.75%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0.8) 30.79%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000) 72.5%); position: absolute; height: 200px; width: 100%; bottom: 0; display: flex; justify-content: center; align-items: center; padding: 0; } .read-more-background a{ color: #000; } .read-more-btn { padding: 17px 45px; font-family: Inter; font-weight: 700; font-size: 18px; line-height: 16px; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid black; background-color: white; } .hidden { display: none; }
function initializeAllSwipers() { // Get all hidden inputs with cms_article_id document.querySelectorAll('[id^="cms_article_id_"]').forEach(function (input) { const cmsArticleId = input.value; const articleSelector = '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .body_images'; const swiperElement = document.querySelector(articleSelector); if (swiperElement && !swiperElement.classList.contains('swiper-initialized')) { new Swiper(articleSelector, { loop: true, pagination: false, navigation: { nextEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-next', prevEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-prev', }, }); } }); } setTimeout(initializeAllSwipers, 3000); const intersectionObserver = new IntersectionObserver( (entries) => { entries.forEach((entry) => { if (entry.isIntersecting) { const newUrl = entry.target.getAttribute("data-url"); if (newUrl) { history.pushState(null, null, newUrl); let article = entry.target; // Extract metadata const author = article.querySelector('.author-section').textContent.replace('By', '').trim(); const section = article.querySelector('.section-info ').textContent.replace(' ', ' '); const title = article.querySelector('.article-title h1').textContent; // Parse URL for Chartbeat path format const parsedUrl = new URL(newUrl, window.location.origin); const cleanUrl = parsedUrl.host + parsedUrl.pathname; // Update Chartbeat configuration if (typeof window._sf_async_config !== 'undefined') { window._sf_async_config.path = cleanUrl; window._sf_async_config.sections = section; window._sf_async_config.authors = author; } // Track virtual page view with Chartbeat if (typeof pSUPERFLY !== 'undefined' && typeof pSUPERFLY.virtualPage === 'function') { try { pSUPERFLY.virtualPage({ path: cleanUrl, title: title, sections: section, authors: author }); } catch (error) { console.error('ping error', error); } } // Optional: Update document title if (title && title !== document.title) { document.title = title; } } } }); }, { threshold: 0.1 } ); function showArticleBody(button) { const article = button.closest("article"); const summary = article.querySelector(".article-body-summary"); const body = article.querySelector(".article-body-preview"); const readMoreSection = article.querySelector(".read-more-background"); // Hide summary and read-more section summary.style.display = "none"; readMoreSection.style.display = "none"; // Show the full article body body.classList.remove("hidden"); } document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", () => { let loadCount = 0; // Track how many times articles are loaded const offset = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]; // Offset values const currentUrl = window.location.pathname.substring(1); let isLoading = false; // Prevent multiple calls if (!currentUrl) { console.log("Current URL is invalid."); return; } const sentinel = document.getElementById("load-more-sentinel"); if (!sentinel) { console.log("Sentinel element not found."); return; } function isSentinelVisible() { const rect = sentinel.getBoundingClientRect(); return ( rect.top < window.innerHeight && rect.bottom >= 0 ); } function onScroll() { if (isLoading) return; if (isSentinelVisible()) { if (loadCount >= offset.length) { console.log("Maximum load attempts reached."); window.removeEventListener("scroll", onScroll); return; } isLoading = true; const currentOffset = offset[loadCount]; window.loadMoreItems().then(() => { let article = document.querySelector('#widget_1690 > div:nth-last-of-type(2) article'); intersectionObserver.observe(article) loadCount++; }).catch(error => { console.error("Error loading more items:", error); }).finally(() => { isLoading = false; }); } } window.addEventListener("scroll", onScroll); });
Join Our Newsletters

Sign up by email to receive news.

© 2025 Manila Bulletin The Nation's Leading Newspaper. All Rights Reserved.