Goldman Sachs raised its December Brent crude forecast to $85 a barrel as the conflict involving Iran and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz tightened oil supplies and pushed regional energy costs higher. Brent was trading between $102 and $104 a barrel, above the bank's year-end estimate, while liquefied natural gas and diesel prices reached annual highs across Asia-Pacific. Subsidies and regulated prices are moderating the inflation impact in some economies, although price trends differ by region. The forecast revises the oil backdrop to Goldman's earlier expectation that declining crude prices would help ease inflation and support a Federal Reserve pause after a potential October rate increase.