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Gas prices in the U.S. hit a record high for Labor Day weekend, averaging $4.14 per gallon -- nearly a dollar more than last year and surpassing the previous record of $3.82 in 2012, according to the AAA motor club.
Prices shot up after the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran in February and have not settled down since. Crude oil traffic through the key Strait of Hormuz has plunged, and Iran has refused to reopen the waterway.
"Everything points to the Iran war and the Strait of Hormuz," said Tom Seng, a professor of energy finance at Texas Christian University.
In energy markets Monday, Brent crude, the international standard, added 4 cents to $96.32 a barrel following further escalation of the six-month -long U.S. war with Iran.
Benchmark U.S. crude fell 29 cents to $91.19 a barrel.