NEW YORK (AP) – Global oil prices shot past US$100 a barrel on Wednesday as fighting between the United States and Iran escalated, threatening to increase costs for consumers and businesses worldwide. Brent crude, the international standard, climbed into triple digits after attacks on oil facilities and ships in the Middle East that could further debilitate an already weakened supply chain – and continued to hover just above the US$100 threshold as of midday trading in the US. That last time prices were that high was in July.