The recent rise in the oil price should not pose a threat to the global recovery - for now, believes Francisco Blanch, head of global commodities research at Banc of America Securities-Merrill Lynch.

"As long as prices rise only moderately from here - say, revisiting the $80 a barrel level by year-end, this would not pose severe risks for the advanced economies, while the emerging ones would be able to tolerate even higher levels, say, $100, in due course," he says.