The impact from high oil prices spurred by uncertainties in Libya and the Middle East is likely to have a "limited" negative impact on the Nikkei 225 stock average as demand growth offsets higher energy costs, according to UBS AG.
For every 10 percent increase in crude oil prices, the operating profit for Japanese companies is cut by 0.65 percent, strategists led by Shoji Hirakawa wrote in a UBS report dated March 4.
Unless there is a "major oil shock," the negative impact on the Nikkei 225 is likely to be small, according to the report.