Scott Horsley

Scott Horsley, NPR News, Washington.

Shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz south of Iran has come to a virtual standstill.

About 20 percent of the world's oil typically flows through that narrow waterway.

Gasoline prices have also jumped, topping $3 a gallon for the first time since early December.

The more people have to spend on gasoline, the less they have to spend on everything else.

Fears of a consumer slowdown are weighing on the broader stock market.

Natural gas prices have also jumped, which will raise both heating and electricity costs.

Even before the war started, natural gas prices had climbed nearly 10 percent over the last year, and electricity prices have been rising at more than twice the rate of inflation.

Scott Horsley, NPR News, Washington.

The average price of gasoline jumped 11 cents overnight, topping $3 a gallon for the first time in three months.

Low gasoline prices had been a counterweight to inflation for most of the last year, but AAA says at $3.11 a gallon, gasoline's now slightly more expensive than it was a year ago.

The war with Iran has not only pushed up global crude oil prices, but also caused a spike in the cost of natural gas.

If sustained, that could drive up already high heating and electricity bills.

Airline stocks are lower on the threat of rising fuel oil prices, and Amazon shares opened down after drones demonstrated

damaged Amazon facilities in Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates as Iran responds to U.S.

and Israeli strikes.

Scott Horsley, NPR News, Washington.

Wholesale prices jumped by half a percent last month, a bigger increase than investors had expected.

Stubborn inflation means the Federal Reserve is likely to take its time before ordering any additional cuts in interest rates.

Shares the fintech company Block bucked the downward trend in the market and launched big gains after the company announced plans to lay off about 40 percent of its workforce.