Threadneedle says get used to $100 oil

By Jeremy Gaunt, European Investment Correspondent

LONDON (Reuters) - Investors should get used to the idea of living with oil above $100 a barrel and shift some of their asset allocations accordingly, fund firm Threadneedle said on Thursday.

It pointed to improving prospects in oil-producer equity markets such as Brazil and Russia compared with less robust outlooks for consumer nations such as the United States and Japan.

In fixed income, it warned that over the short term inflation may pressure government bonds.

"Oil analysts have been consistently behind the curve as the oil price has risen and we think they are still behind the curve now," Dominic Rossi, head of equities, said in a note.

"We can't see oil falling below $100 from here and it's time investors accepted triple digit oil and started positioning portfolios accordingly."

Rossi said that as well as tapping into the massive transfer of wealth from oil importing nations to oil-producing ones -- by buying oil services companies, for example -- investors could make gains indirectly from various stock sectors.

These included consumer-related stocks such as retail, property and mobile telecoms in oil-rich emerging market companies. He also suggested companies likely to benefit from new infrastructure initiatives.

"The companies supplying these programmes, such as heavy equipment manufacturers, steel companies and cement producers, are all overweights for us," Rossi said.