Logistical challenges in getting oil-field supplies to worksites in the Middle East continue to weigh on the region's upstream recovery. After five full months of restricted passage through Hormuz, companies are shifting to a longer-term view of how the Mideast conflict will impact operations. The pace of recovery in upstream activity has been "mixed" across the Mideast Gulf, executives say. In April, NOV had flagged freight costs that were sometimes up to "three to four times normal levels." Weatherford CEO Girish Saligram said freight and logistics costs in the Mideast "remain elevated" but started to moderate after peaking in May.