Ex-Im Bank loan backs Ford exports

Ex-Im Bank loan backs Ford exports    The U.S. Export-Import Bank has approved a $250 million working capital loan guarantee for Ford Motor Co. in Dearborn, Mich., to help finance $3.1 billion in export sales for more than 200,000 vehicles being sold to buyers in Canada and Mexico.
   These exports represent 15 percent of Ford’s 2009 production and the vehicles will be manufactured in plants located in Chicago; Dearborn and Wayne, Mich.; Kansas City, Mo.; Louisville, Ky.; and Avon Lake, Ohio.
   The Private Export Funding Corp. will provide the funding for the revolving $250 million loan backed by Ex-Im’s guarantee. The loan, fees and interest will be paid off in one year, the bank said.
   Models to be exported using the Ex-Im loan guarantee facility include the F-150 pickup, Explorer SUV, Focus, Escape, Expedition, E-Series Van, Taurus, and Lincoln MKS and Navigator. The loan facility will also support the export of the new crossover Ford Explorer SUV, which is scheduled to go into production at the Chicago assembly plant later this year.
   Ford reports that key suppliers to the Explorer alone are investing in new facilities and hiring for more than 600 jobs in Michigan, Indiana and Illinois. According to Tony Brown, group vice president of Ford Global Purchasing, more than 650 companies in 41 states produce parts and components for the vehicles being exported. At the same time thousands of other indirect suppliers provide other services to Ford.
   The bank called the transaction 'innovative' and a 'first of its kind.' The loan is formula-based and secured by vehicles in transit to Canada and Mexico. 'The flexibility of the formula-based loan facility will facilitate the continued growth of Ford’s exports,' Ex-Im Bank said. ' Chris Gillis