NAM Urges Senate to Get Ex-Im Bank Back Up and Running
(National Association of Manufacturers, Washington, 8 March 2019) Securing a level playing field internationally [i.e. matching corporate subsidies] is vital to manufacturers in the United States, which already export about half their production, supporting millions of workers across the country. While there’s been a lot of focus on foreign barriers that impede U.S. exports, one of the most concerning problems is of our own making: the Senate’s failure to confirm nominees to the Board of Directors of the U.S. Export-Import Bank. Without these nominees, the Ex-Im Bank cannot even consider major deals over $10 million or even act on the reforms that Congress set out it when it last reauthorized the bank in 2015. With the Ex-Im Bank severely weakened, manufacturers in the United States are losing sales to foreign competitors who are backed up by nearly 100 other export credit agencies around the world. For example, China’s two Export Credit Agencies routinely help their companies out-muscle their U.S. rivals. Last year, China provided $45 billion in medium- and long-term investment support for projects around the world, more than the rest of the world combined. According to the National Association of Manufacturer’s estimates, manufacturers lost at least $119 billion in manufacturing output, translating into 80,000 fewer manufacturing jobs in 2016 and 2017 as a result of an inactive Bank.