The Globe and Mail reports in its Monday, April 6, edition that OPEC+ agreed on Sunday to increase its oil output quotas by 206,000 barrels a day for May, a modest rise that will mostly be symbolic as its key members cannot boost production due to the conflict with Iran. A Reuters dispatch to The Globe reports that the war has effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz since late February and halted exports from OPEC+ members Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait and Iraq, the only countries in the group that could significantly increase production even before the conflict started. Crude prices have surged to a four-year high close to $120 (U.S.) a barrel, translating into soaring prices for transport fuels which are pressuring consumers and businesses across the globe, and triggering government action to conserve supplies. The OPEC+ quota increase of 206,000 b/d represents less than 2 per cent of the supply disrupted by the Hormuz closure, but it signals readiness to raise output once the waterway reopens, OPEC+ sources have said. Consultancy Energy Aspects called the increase "academic" as long as disruptions in the strait persist. JPMorgan sees oil price exceeding $150 (U.S.) if the strait stays closed into mid-May.