A four-decade-old U.S. ban on crude exports should remain until a “saturation” point when domestic refining capacity becomes insufficient to absorb increased oil production, according to Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) Maintaining the statutory curb on shipments overseas will deliver the “highest value” to the U.S. economy, the bank said in an e-mailed report today. At current extraction costs, the export ban may start to weigh on U.S. output growth in coming years, it predicted. Rising production from shale formations has allowed the U.S., the world’s biggest oil consumer, to import less crude, fueling speculation that the curb on exports could be lifted. A 1975 federal law bans most shipments overseas, with only deliveries of refined products including gasoline and diesel allowed. Supporters of the ban say keeping U.S.-produced oil at home helps reduce fuel prices for industry and consumers. “Keeping the ban in place would be the optimal […]