The Globe and Mail reports in its Wednesday edition that sky-high prices for physical barrels stemming from the Mideast war highlight worries over an unprecedented supply crisis. The Globe's Jeffrey Jones writes that over the past week, international benchmark Brent crude contracts surged above $111 a barrel after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to destroy Iran's power plants and civil infrastructure (all figures U.S.). They then fell well below $100 after the two sides agreed on a two-week ceasefire, and settled down 4.6 per cent at $94.79 on Tuesday. But the world is still grappling with the largest-ever loss of oil supply as tanker traffic remains halted in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran and the United States are both blockading shipping through the route and now the price of oil for prompt delivery in Europe has surged to a record near $150 a barrel. The gap between that and the futures price shows how fears of physical shortages are worsening among global refiners, prompting them to scramble for replacement supplies. Global oil supplies dwindled by 10.1 million barrels a day in March to 97 million a day. The drop was made worse by shut-in wells and Iranian attacks on Persian Gulf energy infrastructure.