EXPORT-IMPORT BANK HELPS WEARE, NH SMALL BUSINESS WITH $2.4 MILLION EXPORT CREDIT GUARANTEE
Portsmouth, NH - The Export-Import Bank of the United States (Ex-Im Bank) today announced the approval of a $2.4 million export credit guarantee in support of the export by Hexaport International Limited, Weare, NH, of a steel frame manufacturing facility to Bahrain.
This transaction is a wonderful example of how the Export-Import Bank can help New Hampshire businesses sustain and create jobs by increasing export sales, Joe Grandmaison, a member of the Ex-Im Bank board of directors, said. Grandmaison, a New Hampshire native, made the announcement during a one-day exporter seminar at the New Hampshire International Trade Resource Center in Portsmouth. Nearly two-dozen New Hampshire manufacturers attended the seminar to learn how to increase sales by selling in the international marketplace.
Hexaport is one of more than 30 companies in New Hampshire that Ex-Im Bank has helped successfully compete in the world market. By utilizing the Export-Import Bank, we [Hexaport] have the potential to be the biggest company in the world in our field, Hexaport President Anthony Attalla said during the exporter seminar. Hexaport produces steel frame housing and building systems and currently has 70 employees. We plan to add many more employees because of Ex-Im Bank's approval of this transaction, Attalla said.
Dawn Wivell, director of the New Hampshire International Trade Resource Center, in opening remarks at the Portsmouth exporter seminar, noted the importance of exports to the New Hampshire economy: One in four businesses in New Hampshire now export. That means international sales are important for sustaining jobs.
Companies that export are nearly 10 percent less likely to close, Wivell said. Without Ex-Im Bank, we would not have the success that we have seen in New Hampshire.
The Export-Import Bank has financed nearly $124 million in exports in the last five years from 22 communities in New Hampshire.
Ex-Im Bank is an independent federal agency that provides financing through direct loans, export credit insurance, and guarantees. As the official export agency of the United States, Ex-Im Bank helps U.S. businesses compete on price and the quality of goods and services sold in the world market. In fiscal year 2001, Ex-Im Bank authorized financing to support $12.5 billion of U.S. exports worldwide.