EX-IM BANK ANNOUNCES BILINGUAL WEB PAGE PORTAL FOR RUSSIA

Russia-Specific Information Available on Bank's Web Site in Russian and English
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 31, 2004
Media Contact Name/Phone
Mary Chunko (202) 565-3200

Washington, DC - American companies interested in exporting goods and services to Russia, and Russian companies seeking financing to purchase U.S. goods and services, can now access information on the financial products offered by the Export-Import Bank of the United States (Ex-Im Bank) directly from a new portal that has been added to the agency's web site at: (pages under construction)(in English) or (pages under construction) (in Russian). The Ex-Im Bank Web Portal for Russia, available in Russian and English, describes Ex-Im Bank programs that can help U.S. and Russian businesses find financing to export or import U.S. goods and services to Russia, thus helping sustain jobs in the United States.

Russia is one of our top-priority markets, states Ex-Im Bank Chairman Philip Merrill. The Bank has a large portfolio in Russia, which we are seeking to expand. We are actively seeking to work with private-sector companies in Russia, while at the same time Ex-Im Bank has strengthened its ties with a number of Russian financial institutions to help Russian buyers purchase more U.S. exports. The new Ex-Im Bank Web Portal for Russia is part of that effort.

Ex-Im Bank supports the financing of U.S. goods and services, turning export opportunities into real transactions, maintaining and creating more U.S. jobs, while assuming credit and country risks the private sector is unable or unwilling to accept.

Ex-Im Bank this year marks its 70th year of helping finance the sale of U.S. exports, primarily to emerging markets throughout the world, by providing loan guarantees, export credit insurance, and direct loans. In fiscal year 2003, Ex-Im Bank, an independent federal agency, authorized financing to support $14.3 billion of U.S. exports worldwide. For more information on Ex-Im Bank and its initiatives to support Iraqi reconstruction, visit www.exim.gov.