91ÊÓƵ

Saudi Arabia, Iraq, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait have lowered their collective output by as much as 6.7 million barrels a day, Bloomberg reports. That amounts to about 6% of global supply.

With a key shipping route cut off, oil prices have surged — from less than $70 a barrel on Feb. 27 to nearly $120 early March 9 before settling closer to $90. They’ve taken diesel and gasoline prices with them.

Nearly all goods — including food — that are bought and sold must travel from where they’re produced. Those costs will climb with higher gasoline, diesel and jet fuel prices.

The U.S. stock market careened through a manic March 9, going from a steep early loss to a solid gain as worries turned into hope that the war with Iran may not last that long.

President Donald Trump is mulling a menu of possible options to combat surging oil and gasoline prices in the wake of the Iran war, according to people familiar with the matter.

G-7 finance ministers held a virtual meeting to discuss the Iran war, its impact for regional stability, global economic conditions and financial markets, and the importance of secure trading routes.

The war is showing no signs of abating after U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran more than a week ago, and the fallout is stoking fears of an inflation crisis. The halt to shipping through Hormuz has driven up fuel prices.

The Trump administration announced a $20 billion reinsurance program aimed at reviving shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, where traffic has all but stopped amid the U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran. 

U.S. oil posted the biggest weekly gain on record as the war in Iran upends critical energy market flows, with shipping through the Strait of Hormuz at a near-total halt.

In a desperate bid to transport oil from the U.S. Gulf Coast to Asia, shippers have taken the unusual step of booking smaller vessels as costs soar for the massive tankers typically used.