Black gold continues to go up in cost

In the London Free Press article Oil hits record of $70 a barrel we see the continued trend of increasing oil, and ergo gas, prices in the United States. The article cites the most recent hikes as the result of tension originating from Iran's decision to continue its enrichment program.

Given that Iran doesn't seem to be backing down and the continued instability of the Middle East, what ramifications will this have for US business? Despite the growth of E-business, the vast majority of the economy still revolves around land-based industries and, as such, requires transportation for their goods and services. The price of such transportation is, most likely, closely linked with the price of fuel. As the costs of maintaining business increases in the United States, will we see the expected increase in market prices as the increased marginal costs decrease the general levels of supply? Will businesses cease production as their variable costs increase with the increase in oil price? These and other ramifications should prove to be interesting phenomenon to watch.