Report: US preparing for international challenge of crude oil export ban

U.S. officials have started to talk internally about what they could do if foreign countries challenge the ban on crude oil exports on free-trade grounds.

Officials do not believe such a challenge is imminent, Reuters reported. But South Korea and NATO countries have been pressuring the Obama administration to loosen the 1970s-era ban.

{mosads}But the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative and the National Security Council have participated in recent internal talks, Reuters reported, citing sources familiar with the talks.

The discussions are one of the clearest signs yet that the Obama administration is looking to loosen the ban. Earlier this year, it allowed two companies to export a lightly processed oil product that had not been allowed previously.

But the administration has repeatedly said it has no immediate plans to change any policies. And though it might have some wiggle room, Congress would ultimately be responsible for completely lifting the ban.

A Trade Representative spokesman told Reuters the agency has not had any formal talks on the matter.

Last week, former Obama economic adviser Larry Summers endorsed lifting the prohibition, the highest-ranking former Obama official to do so yet. The Brookings Institution also released a study last week that found that exporting crude would not increase gasoline prices domestically.