TPW DESK 
New Friction on Busy Waterway
China’s Southern Theater Command announced “routine” patrols in the South China Sea and warned the Philippines to halt “provocations.” The move follows joint drills by the US, Japan, and the Philippines in Manila’s EEZ, underscoring a tense new phase at sea.
Manila’s Calculus
For the Philippines, alliances are its leverage. Expanded exercises and access agreements aim to deter coercion around disputed shoals and resupply missions. But heightened operations raise collision and miscalculation risks.
Why It Matters to Trade
The South China Sea carries a third of global shipping. Any incident that disrupts passage can rattle energy flows and prices from the Gulf to East Asia—reverberations Bangladesh’s import-dependent economy would feel at the pump.
