Oil Prices Tick Higher as U.S. Reinstates Iran Blockade

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.The move comes after oil prices soared on Tuesday 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 contributed to oil prices soaring above $120 a barrel by the end of that month.Oil prices retain their gains.The price of Brent crude, the global benchmark for oil, hovered around $85 a barrel, up 0.7 percent.West Texas Intermediate crude, the U.S.benchmark, rose 1 percent to around $80 a barrel.Investors and analysts are focused on the continued disruption to shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway between Iran and Oman that is a vital trading route for oil and natural gas that normally carries as much as one-fifth of the world’s oil supply....