Rising oil prices have yet to faze Japan. But with oil experts projecting further hikes to as much as $80 a barrel, the nation should brace itself for direct and indirect hits on its recovery in the not-so-distant future, economists say.
At their summit last week, leaders of the Group of Eight nations agreed that high oil prices present a risk to the global economy. They found no solution.
Oil futures, just $40 a barrel at the beginning of 2001 on the U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate, hit a record $60 a barrel last month. Crude oil sales in the United States are usually priced in relation to WTI, and price changes there affect Tokyo crude oil prices on the Dubai exchange.