US Treasury Secretary Lew, Colombian Minister Discuss Oil Prices, Peace Deal

US and Colombian officials have discussed Colombia’s response to lower oil prices and the economic impact of a peace deal with rebels, US Treasury Secretary Jack Lew said at a meeting in Bogota with Finance Minister Mauricio Cardenas, according to a Treasury Department release.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — The US secretary described Colombia’s effort to become less reliant on exports of crude oil and other commodities.

"Minister Cardenas and I discussed Colombia’s ongoing economic adjustment to lower global prices for its oil exports, including the fiscal challenges that the oil price decline has imposed and the government’s ongoing efforts to address them," Lew stated on Wednesday.

"I was impressed by the energy and commitment with which Colombia is tackling this challenge," Lew said.

The talks also included the economic implications of the recently finalized peace accord between the government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), the release added.

Global oversupply and stagnating demand have caused oil prices to fall from $115 per barrel in June 2014 to less than $30 in January of this year.

On Wednesday, contracts for November deliveries of Brent crude were trading around $50 a barrel, driven by media reports of a pending production cut by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries.