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Crude oil prices surged to a record high on Thursday after Libya said it was considering the possibility of reducing output in response to potential U.S. actions against oil-producing countries.

Light sweet crude oil for August delivery peaked at $140.39 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) yesterday, surpassing the previous intraday record of $139.89 a barrel reached on June 16th. At the close of trading the contract record settlement price of $139.64 a barrel, up $5.09 a barrel, or 3.8 percent on the previous day.

London Brent Crude for August delivery also jumped above $140 a barrel for the first time on Thursday, reaching a record intraday high of $140.56 a barrel. The contract later settled up $5.50 at $139.83 a barrel.

Oil prices surged on Thursday following comments from Shokri Ghanem, Libya's National Oil Corp. Chairman, that the country was studying the possibility of cutting crude exports. Libya currently produces approximately 1.71 million barrels of crude oil a day, according to recent estimates.

Ghanem's remarks were in reponse to a bill before the U.S. Congress that would empower the Justice Department to sue members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) for limiting oil supplies.

Ghanem said the cuts may also be made because of a law passed by Congress in January that would allow the families of terror victims to seize assets of foreign governments as compensation. The law would potentially result in Libyan assets being confiscated as compensation for Libyan-linked attacks. At least two lawsuits have already been filed in Washington.

Meanwhile, comments by OPEC President Chakib Khelil that oil prices could reach $170 a barrel over the next few months, and news of a looming strike by Chevron oil workers in Nigeria, added to the bullish outlook in crude oil markets on Thursday.