(Investing) – Oil prices climbed on Wednesday, as investors assessed potential disruptions to crude flows out of the Middle East and the United States.By 08:55 ET (12:55 GMT), benchmark Brent crude futures had risen by 0.9% to $101.50 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures had ticked up by 0.4% to $89.80 a barrel.In the previous session, oil prices initially dropped towards $97 a barrel, reflecting data showing that Gulf oil exporters managed to surpass pre-war levels for roughly half of September. The figures, along with a pledge last week by Group of Seven countries to release emergency energy reserves and reopened operations at Saudi Arabia’s East-West pipeline, buoyed hopes for a recovery in Middle East oil supplies.Yet that fall was short-lived, with Brent eventually once again climbing back above $100, as caution took hold on news of increased Iranian strikes against tankers passing through the Strait of Hormuz, analysts at Deutsche Bank said. Iranian state media also reported that a blast was heard off Qeshm island near Hormuz, exacerbating fears of disruptions to tanker traffic through the vital waterway, which has been effectively closed off since shortly after a joint U.S.-Israeli assault on Iran in late February.Fighting has also intensified between Saudi-aligned coalition forces in Yemen and Iran-backed Houthi militants. Government forces and Riyadh have stepped up air attacks to retake Houthi-controlled territory, including areas near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, another critical chokepoint for Gulf oil shipments.“There is a clear tug-of-war at the moment between improving supply from the region and lingering threats to supply. Clearly, it’s looking as though the only way to see prices trade sustainably lower is for lingering risks to be addressed,” analysts at ING said in a note.“For now, the market is likely to remain nervous to any potential supply disruptions.”A potentially major storm heading towards U.S. oil-producing regions added to worries around constrained global supplies. Forecasters have said the storm may become the first Atlantic hurricane of 2026 within two days and could barrel into areas that produce 15% of U.S. crude and 5% of the country natural gas, Reuters reported.Elsewhere, U.S. oil inventories fell 2.09 million barrels in the week to October 2, data from the American Petroleum Institute showed on Tuesday.The API data usually heralds a similar trend from official U.S. inventory data, which is due later on Wednesday.(Ambar Warrick contributed reporting)