Analysis: Latin America grows increasingly hooked on U.S. fuel imports

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http://finance.yahoo.com/news/analysis-latin-america-grows-increasingly-133345347.html



HOUSTON (Reuters) - Despite its own vast oil reserves, Latin America has doubled its reliance on the United States for fuels like diesel and gasoline over the last five years to keep its economies humming - and the dependence is growing.

The culprit is an outdated refining network that has not been upgraded to add capacity as growth has surged across much of the region.

Though Latin American leaders spent much of the last decade opening markets in Asia and in some cases distancing themselves from Washington, the rising fuel imports show they still must tap the United States for crucial supplies.

Latin America's dependence on the United States for refined fuels is growing at the same time that U.S. reliance on foreign oil falls thanks to an unprecedented boom in domestic production and falling fuel demand.