Oil prices rose on Wednesday as the United States reinstated its blockade on Iranian ports in the Strait of Hormuz and shipping slowed to a crawl amid the renewed warfare in the critical waterway.
On Tuesday, oil prices soared to their highest level in a month, breaching $87 a barrel, before pulling back slightly after President Trump announced he would “replace” a 20 percent fee on cargo transiting the strait with “trade and investment deals” with Gulf states, though he left many specifics about the plan unanswered.
The United States had put in place a blockade in April, which sent oil prices soaring to over $120 a barrel by the end of that month.
