Oil prices hit $100 a barrel for the first time since May, when the escalating conflict in the Middle East revived fears about global energy supplies.

Brent crude, the global benchmark for oil prices, rose more than 5% Thursday after several days of increases as the United States escalated military strikes against Iran.

Prices soared after the Houthi militia attacked oil tankers in the Red Sea, threatening a key export route that Saudi Arabia has used to avoid the Strait of Hormuz.

Gas prices have also risen steadily over the last month, with the UK gas benchmark price currently at around 150p per therm, up from around 98p per therm on 26 June.

On Thursday, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said three tankers had abandoned an attempt to pass through Hormuz after an explosion aboard one of them caused it to catch fire.

A temporary ceasefire between the United States and Iran has failed and this week US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that those responsible in Iran were “not prepared to reach an agreement.”