The US House of Representatives on Friday overwhelmingly passed a bill to lift the 40-year ban on crude oil exports, Reuters reports. The bill must still pass the Senate before President Barack Obama can sign it into law.
The announcement comes as oil prices are hovering at the lows of 2008. US crude benchmark WTI was trading at $35.00 per barrel and Brent at $37.04 a barrel as of 4:00pm GMT on Friday.
For nearly two years US oil producers have been lobbying Congress to lift the ban on oil exports, claiming it would eliminate market distortions and stimulate the US economy.
However, American crude producers may not be willing to export oil if the price stays low. If a barrel is more expensive to produce than the market price, it is more likely that US oil companies will slow production and keep it on the domestic market.
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