Oil prices soared to highs above $126 yesterday as the President of Brazil said that the South American country was considering joining Opec.

The latest record, the fifth in as many sessions, was driven by a new round of speculative buying as markets remained jittery about tight global supplies and booming demand. New York’s main oil futures contract, light sweet crude for June delivery, touched a high of $126.20 in early afternoon London trading. London’s Brent crude contract hit a record $125.90.

Investor sentiment was unnerved by comments from President da Silva of Brazil, where a series of oil discoveries promises to turn the country into a key global producer in the coming years.

In an interview in a German magazine, Mr da Silva said that Brazil aimed to produce oil from its Carioca field offshore from São Paolo in 2010 and was considering joining Opec, the cartel of 13 countries that produce 40 per cent of the world’s oil. “[From 2010] Brazil will then become a large oil exporter. We want to join Opec and try to make oil cheaper,” he was quoted as saying.

Last month Haroldo Lima, the head of Brazil’s National Petroleum Agency, cited data from Petrobas, the state oil company, which suggested that the Carioca field could contain reserves of as much as 33 billion barrels of oil. If confirmed, it would be the largest find in the world in the past 30 years.

Brazil is likely to come under heavy pressure from big consumer countries, especially the United States, not to join the cartel, which produces 32 million of the world’s 85 million barrels of oil a day.

This week, Opec brushed aside American calls for a production increase, insisting that the market was well supplied. Oil markets surged this week after a report from Goldman Sachs forecast that prices would reach $150 to $200 a barrel within two years.