Oil futures in New York rose to a new record of 100.09 US dollars a barrel on Thursday after the US government reported a larger-than-expected decline in crude oil inventories and an unexpected rise in heating oil supplies.

A day after oil prices briefly touched 100 US dollars for the first time, the US Energy Department's Energy Information Administration said crude inventories fell by four million barrels last week.

Meantime, tensions in oil producing nations like Nigeria and Iran have increasingly made investors nervous and invited speculators to drive prices even higher.

Word that several Mexican oil export ports were closed due to rough weather added to the gains, as did a report that OPEC may not be able to meet its share of global oil demand by 2024.

Ira Eckstein, President of Area International Trading tells his idea about the oil price hike.

I think that when we go to 120 and stay there for six months, that's going to have a significant impact on the economy. I think one print at 100 (US) dollars now is a non-event on the economy.

Light, sweet crude for January delivery rose 4.02 US dollars to 100 US dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, according to a Nymex spokeswoman, before slipping back to 99.27 US dollars.

Oil prices are within the range of inflation-adjusted highs set in early 1980.