1 | (AP) - The U.S. is easing its longstanding ban on crude oil exports by allowing limited trade with Mexico. |
2 | That's according to a senior Obama administration official who wasn't authorized to comment by name and requested anonymity. |
3 | Mexico's state-run oil company Petroleos Mexicanos, or Pemex, has sought to import about 100,000 barrels of light U.S. crude a day. |
4 | Last year it proposed a deal in which the U.S. would trade the light crude for heavier Mexican crude. |
5 | The official says the Commerce Department is approving some license applications for the exchange of similar amount of U.S. and Mexican crude. |
6 | Congress has pressed the Obama administration to lift the crude oil ban, with Republicans arguing it would make the U.S. an energy superpower. |
7 | The ban has been in place for four decades. |