Oil prices moved higher as a worsening spill near Oman and recent deadly attacks on vessels in the Gulf of Oman and the Red Sea revived concerns about supply disruption around the Strait of Hormuz, a critical oil shipping chokepoint. Tensions between the U.S. and Iran added to the unease after President Donald Trump said Washington had "total control" over the waterway, a claim Iran rejected. The Persian Gulf Strait Authority said on X that "The Strait of Hormuz remains blocked and will not be reopened until Iran's conditions are accepted." Saudi Arabia is increasing oil exports through a Mediterranean pipeline to bypass attacks in the Red Sea by Houthi militants. In Asia, Japan's producer price growth missed analysts' expectations and eased to 7.2% year on year in July, with electricity prices the biggest contributor to the producer price index. South Korea's benchmark Kospi headed into a technical bull market, helped by a rebound in the global AI trade after last month's historic sell-off, and Fundstrat Global Advisors said the rally may have further room to run as the country's major memory chipmakers recover. In semiconductors, Yangtze Memory Technologies gained market share and ranked ahead of U.S. rival Micron and Japan's Kioxia, according to Counterpoint.