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NEW YORK — <\/span>Eight countries that are part of the OPEC+ oil cartel <\/a> announced Sunday they will boost production of crude as U.S. and Israeli forces launched a major attack on Iran<\/a> and the country responded with retaliatory strikes against Israel and U.S. military installations around the Gulf, disrupting oil shipments from the region<\/a>. <\/p>\n The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, in a Sunday meeting planned before the war began, said it would increase production by 206,000 barrels per day in April, which was more than analysts had been expecting. The countries boosting output include Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iraq, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Algeria and Oman.<\/p>\n Attacks throughout the region, including on two vessels traveling through the Strait of Hormuz<\/a>, the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf, could restrict countries’ ability to export oil to the rest of the world. That would will likely result in higher prices for crude oil<\/a> and gasoline, according to energy experts. <\/p>\n Roughly 15 million barrels of crude oil per day \u2014 about 20% of the world\u2019s oil \u2014 are shipped through the Strait of Hormuz<\/a>, making it the world’s most critical oil chokepoint, according to Rystad Energy. Tankers traveling through the strait, which is bordered in the north by Iran, carry oil and gas from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq, Qatar, Bahrain, the UAE and Iran. <\/p>\n