Since oil prices exceeded $70 per barrel earlier this year, analysts, economists, and central banks have been fretting about whether higher crude prices could disrupt the momentum in global economic recovery from the pandemic. Most experts argue that inflationary pressure is no doubt rising in developing economies, which are more sensitive than developed markets to rising oil prices. Fuel and food prices generally account for more consumer spending in emerging economies, so they hurt them more than mature markets when oil prices rise. Inflation concerns have also started to emerge in the United States and other developed countries. Yet, most analysts believe that oil prices—currently at around $75 a barrel —are not as high as to seriously slow down economic growth, especially in the U.S. and Europe. In those areas, services account for a large and growing share of gross domestic product, and the cost of oil as a […]