Oil prices rise as U.S. and Iran fight for control of Strait of Hormuz

Oil prices rose Sunday evening after the U.S. and Iran traded strikes as they contest control of the Strait of Hormuz, one of the most important trade routes for global energy supplies.

U.S. crude oil futures were up 3.4% to $73.87 per barrel by 6:03 p.m. ET. Brent futures, the international benchmark, traded 3.5% higher at $78.67.

The U.S. military launched another wave of strikes Sunday against Iran after hitting 140 targets on Saturday, according to U.S. Central Command.

The strikes are in response to an attack by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on a container ship transiting Hormuz.

Iran responded Sunday with strikes on U.S. military facilities in Jordan, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman, according to the state news agency Tasnim.

Iranian state media said the Revolutionary Guard had closed the Hormuz until further notice, but the U.S. military disputed that claim.

Centcom said the strait was open to "all vessels seeking to lawfully transit."

"U.S. forces are positioned and prepared to ensure that freedom of navigation remains available despite unwarranted Iranian aggression, harassment, threats, and arbitrary declarations," Centcom said in a social media post Sunday.

President Donald Trump said Hormuz was open in an interview with NBC News' "Meet the Press" that aired Sunday.

The maritime intelligence firm Windward tracked nine ships that transited the strait on Saturday.

The southern route through Oman's waters remains open to inbound and outbound traffic, said the Joint Maritime Information Center, a U.S.-led n...