Oil Prices Rise as Iran and U.S. Strikes Slow Traffic in Strait of Hormuz

After tumbling last week, oil prices reversed direction on Wednesday, topping $90 a barrel, as attacks resumed in the Middle East, jolting investors concerned about the flow of energy out of the region.

The United States and Saudi Arabia said they had struck Iranian-backed militias in Iraq, and Iran said it had fired missiles at U.S. military targets in the region.

In addition, the Iranian-backed Houthi militia in Yemen said on Tuesday that they had launched missiles at a Saudi oil tanker, the group’s latest attack since announcing a blockade of Saudi shipping in the Red Sea.

The Houthis’ efforts to restrict traffic in the Bab al-Mandab strait at the southern end of the Red Sea, which Saudi Arabia has used as an alternative to Strait of Hormuz, has created a new front in the war with Iran.

Threats of the blockade had helped push up global oil prices, which then eased this week along with several days without full-blown fighting between the United States and Iran.