Ex-Im Bank Critical to Continued US Export Growth, Says Bank President
The U.S. has the potential to surpass China as the largest exporter of goods globally, and the Export-Import Bank plays a critical role in that prospect, said Fred Hochberg, the bank’s president, at an American Association of Port Authorities conference on March 25. Exports have grown 10 percent annually since 2009, the U.S. recorded a record high $2.3 trillion in exports in Fiscal Year 2013 (FY13) and the Obama administration continues to prioritize the National Export Initiative, said Hochberg. Moreover, the bank profited $1.057 billion through financing U.S. exports of construction equipment, locomotives, mining equipment, wind power products and many other goods, said Hochberg.
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The bank faces expiration on Sept. 31, 2014, the end of FY14. “We’re actually considered what’s called a ‘sunset agency,’” said Hochberg. “I don’t think the stakes have ever been higher to make sure that we are an export nation and that we overtake China … we become that number one exporter again because it will create more jobs here at home and actually frankly put more work going through America’s ports.” House Financial Services committee Chairman Jeb Hensarling, R-Texas, has supported permitting the agency to expire (here). The committee has jurisdiction over the agency, so reauthorization legislation would likely originate there.
House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, mentioned reauthorization as one of his main legislative priorities before mid-term elections (see 14031813). The bank provides opportunities for export that China, Russia and 57 countries with export credit agencies would prefer, said Hochberg. “We do work in every single community across this country,” said Hochberg. “We support U.S. jobs particularly where they’re at risk being taken by foreign competition, whether its, as I said, from tractors to medical equipment to you name it, and we do this at no cost to the taxpayer. I think we have a good story to tell. We’ve been doing this for 80 years.” The bank was launched in 1934.