Ex-Im Bank charter reauthorization sought

   The Coalition for Employment through Exports (CEE) wants Congress to pass legislation reauthorizing the U.S. Export-Import Bank through 2015 before adjourning for the year.
   With its charter having expired on Sept. 30, the CEE said the bank needs to be reauthorized as soon as possible to ensure continued support for U.S. exports and jobs. The authorizing committees on Capitol Hill were able to resolve the relatively minor differences between H.R. 2072, the 2011 Securing American Jobs Through Exports Act (H.R. 2072), and the 2011 Export-Import Bank Reauthorization Act (S. 1547). However, the CEE warned if Congress is unable to finalize the reauthorization before the end of the year, the bank will be compelled to begin rationing its remaining capacity and reducing its support for U.S. exporters. 
   “Extending the Ex-Im Bank’s authorization through 2015 and increasing the lending authority of the bank will enable thousands of American exporters, both large and small, to compete more effectively against foreign competitors that enjoy vigorous support from their own export credit agencies (ECAs),” CEE President John Hardy said in a statement.
   “Demand for U.S. capital equipment and services continues to grow at a robust rate throughout the emerging markets, creating significant opportunities for U.S. exporters over the next four years,” he added. “In the next few years, Ex-Im Bank will be even more critical to many U.S. companies due not only to competition from foreign companies and their government ECAs, but also continued restraints on commercial bank lending and the ongoing fallout from the euro crisis.”
   According to CEE estimates, $10 billion in Ex-Im Bank financing supports from 85,000 to 100,000 U.S. jobs between the major exporters and the small- and medium-sized enterprise supply chain companies that support them.
   “Failure to reauthorize the bank this calendar year has serious economic consequences, and we strongly urge the Congress to act,” Hardy warned.