Oil climbs past $147 on tensions in Iran, Nigeria

Crude oil prices hit a new record Friday, surging over $147 US a barrel, boosted by concerns over possible disruption to tight global supplies.

Oil hit a new intraday peak of $147.27 US. Light sweet crude for August deliverylater settled at $145.08 US a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, up by $3.43 from Thursday amid ongoing tensions over Iran's launch of test missiles and the possible renewal of oil-related violence in Nigeria.

"There's always a fear premium in pricing," said Jeff Brown, managing director of FACTS Global Energy in Singapore.

"The tensions in Iran and the threat of supply disruption will help support oil prices.'

Friday's new intraday peak surpassed last week's record of $145.85 US a barrel, after the near-month contract had lost nearly $10 on Monday and Tuesday.