A weak US dollar and renewed tensions between the US and Iran further heated the market, which has already been feverish due to the entry of speculative funds, they said.
New York's main oil futures contract, light sweet crude for July delivery, was up six cents to $129.04 a barrel. The contract for June struck an all-time high of $129.60, before expiring at $129.07 yesterday at the New York Mercantile Exchange.
London's Brent crude contract for July was up 12 cents, $127.96 a barrel. It had briefly hit a new all-time high of $128.07 earlier.
Tony Nunan of Mitsubishi Corp's international petroleum business in Tokyo, said concerns that supplies are not keeping up with demand are driving prices higher.
"The market is technically and fund-driven right now," he said, referring to investors buying into oil in hopes for higher returns.
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David Moore, a commodity strategist at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, said a weaker US dollar and "the recent trend for analysts to revise higher their oil price forecasts" are helping push prices up.
Commodities such as oil priced in the US currency are cheaper for holders of stronger currencies. Many OPEC officials argue that record oil prices are being driven by speculators rather than investors reacting to the actual supply-demand balance.
Oil prices have jumped more than a quarter since the start of 2008, when they struck $100 a barrel for the first time.