A recent report carried out by Nottingham University investigates the impact of the Export-Import Bank of the United States (US Ex-Im) on US exports particularly in the wake of international competition from foreign national export credit agencies (ECAs). TXF's Max Thompson reveals the report's findings.
Earlier this month, the European Banking Authority (EBA) released its report on the leverage ratio requirements under article 511 of the CRR. The report asserts that ECA risk is lower than other trade finance risk and as such, the EBA should leave open the possibility of more favourable treatment of ECAs under the leverage ratio.
Earlier this month, Chinese container shipping conglomerate Coscocs signed an $18 billion financing agreement with China Exim to fund the construction of more than 50 ships as well as overseas investments and mergers. The deal is the largest ECA supported loan to have ever been completed, according to market sources.
Earlier this year, Poland's government announced its Responsible Development Strategy in a bid to gear up the country's economy to reach new levels of growth. Under the plans, the Polish ECA, Kuke, has been allocated PLN $6 billion ($1.58 billion) which will play a key role in facilitating entrepreneurs' access to credit insurance as well as increasing financial support for exports through increased cooperation with banks.
Power is the export finance’s largest sector in H1 of 2016, accounting for 44.1% of the market, with significant growth in both coal-fired and conventional power.
Commerzbank has expanded and repositioned its export finance department in order to become an even bigger player in the ECA market, as Africa and Russia look set to become the bank's most active markets in the coming years.
The Middle East is the largest export finance borrower market in the first half of the year, with a 35.3% share of the global market; the export finance community cites power, oil and gas, and real estate as the driving factors behind the growth.
The Japanese ECA, JBIC, topped the table by covered volume with 25 transactions totalling $9.68 billion in H1 of 2016, with the German ECA Euler Hermes in second place with $3.14 billion in cover, followed closely by the Italian ECA SACE.
The total volume of ECA deals taking place in the first half of 2016 dropped by 22.5% compared to same period last year, while SMBC topped the lenders table with $2.19 billion in financing.
Even though Angola is facing a rollercoaster ride with a drop-off in oil revenues, and a non-payment crisis, three European ECAs have backed a $460.29 million loan to the MoF of Angola for the construction of the Lauca hydroelectric power plant.
At the end of June, Turk Eximbank signed a $746.82 million MIGA-backed loan with a syndicate of banks for on-lending to Turkish exporters. The deal closed just weeks before an attempted coup in Turkey which prompted Standard and Poor's to cut Turkey's credit rating.
Large exporters are increasingly bypassing the banks and providing direct loans to their smaller customers with the help ECA cover.
At the end of last month, the US' Royal Caribbean Cruises (RCC) signed a $1.43 billion Coface-backed buyer's credit agreement with a club of international banks to finance two edge-class cruise vessels for Celebrity Cruises, a premium subsidiary of RCC.
At the end of last month, US Ex -Im unveiled its annual competitiveness report for 2015 to Congress. TXF's Max Thompson analyses the report’s findings.
Earlier this week, South Africa's state-operated power electricity firm, Eskom, signed a $1.34 billion loan with the African Development Bank (AfDB). The funds will be used for the company's general capital expansion, which includes new power plants, maintenance and refurbishment of generation, transmission and distribution facilities.
Earlier this month, the Italian drilling company Saipem closed a €667 ($740 million) million GIEK-backed buyer's credit facility to finance the purchase of equipment and services from Norwegian exporters within the offshore oil & gas technology sector.
Despite foreign investors’ and ECAs’ concerns over the risk of doing business in Argentina, the export community remains excited by the country’s trade prospects , TXF's Max Thompson discovers. The country's newly -elected president has recently put Latin America's second largest economy back in the international trade arena in a bid to boost investor confidence and spark an economic resurgence.
On the sidelines of TXF's Export & Agency Finance conference in Rome, Max Thompson caught up with STX France's head of financing and treasury, Jean-Philippe Neau, to find out more about the shipbuilders multi-billion, multi-year debt plan. The interview ranges from the growing shipping market, the Harmony of the Seas's maiden voyage, and how the shipyard leverages its cash flow with such a busy order book.
Australia's Hornsdale Wind Farm secured financing with a club loan of A$173.5 million from KfW IPEX-Bank and Société Générale for the project’s second stage of construction. The expansion will double the capacity of the wind farm from 100 to 200MW, as pressure builds from the Australia Capital Territory (ACT) to reach the state’s target of deriving100% of its power needs from renewable energy sources by 2020.
Despite the downturn in commodities markets, one of the world's biggest oil traders - Gunvor - is currently enjoying its 'best trading years'. The company closed a $400 million borrowing base facility this month.
Despite TXF's figures showing over half the amount of ECA-backed deals in Asia in H1 of 2016 compared to H1 2015, one Asian export finance specialist tells TXF how the data actually flatters to deceive.
At the end of last month, UK agricultural commodities trader ED&F Man closed a two-year $1.88 billion revolving credit facility with a syndicate of 45 international banks.
On the sidelines of TXF's Export, Agency and Project Finance conference in Rome, Max Thompson caught up with the CEO of Seaborn Network, Larry Schwartz, to find out more about the first ever ECA-backed subsea cable.
At the beginning of 2016, the TXF-ICC Global Survey on Export Finance was carried out among more than 100 export financiers, ECAs, exporters and borrowers. TXF digest the data and analyse how challenges posed in 2015 have affected the export finance community.
During TXF’s Export, Agency and Project Finance conference in Rome last week, Max Thompson caught up with senior vice president of Reliance Industries Vineyesh Sawhney to find out how important ECA support is to India’s largest conglomerate.
Increased demand from SMEs has Swedish ECA EKN double its number of guarantees in Q1 of 2016 compared to the first quarter of 2015.
Earlier last month, the Egyptian government tweaked its contract terms to exclude the option of international arbitration for financiers of renewable energy deals. Development banks, major lenders for these types of deals, met with officials last week to discuss the issue which is delaying funding to a large scale wind farm and solar energy projects in the North African country.
Egypt has partnered with GDF Suez, Toyota and Orascom to build a 250 MW wind farm, the project is part of a government push to hit 4.3 giga watt (GW) of wind and solar projects by the end of next year.
Italian ECA SACE this week announced the value of claims hit €130.8 million in the first quarter results of 2016 - up 91% on the same period last year. SACE says the significant increase reflects compensations paid for Italian supplies in the shipping and the metallurgy sector.
GME, Central America's leading wind energy company, has tapped three international development agencies, FMO, Proparco, and OeEB for $149 million in long-term financing to build four 20-MW wind farms in Costa Rica.
Italian ECA SACE reopened its support of transactions with Argentina after the Italian undersecretary for development Ivan Scalfarotto last week announced guarantees for €700 million credit lines during his visit to the newly-liberalised Latin American country.
Afreximbank closed a $750 million five-year bond last week after achieving an order book of $3.4 billion from 290 investors - the biggest ever book and largest trade the bank has ever completed.
The total number of ECA deals taking place in the first quarter of 2016 has more than halved compared to Q1 of 2015, while deal volume is down 12%. TXF's Q1 data clearly reveals larger but fewer deals are taking place, but the question on everyone's mind is what's driving this dramatic drop in the number of deals in the market?
The Islamic Corporation for the Insurance of Investment and Export Credit (ICIEC), part of the Islamic Development Bank Group (IsDB), is ready to invest in projects in Indonesia after it signed an agency agreement yesterday with PT AsuransiAsei Indonesia at the IsDB's 41st annual meeting in Jakarta, Indonesia.
The Luxembourg-based stainless-steel producer closed a $400 million borrowing base revolving credit facility in March, a month after Moody's upgraded the company to Ba1. The 'backup' deal is indicative of a 'cash rich' company thriving in a struggling metals market.
Fitch yesterday joined Moody's and Standard & Poor's in cutting Noble to "junk" status, as the commodities trader battles for liquidity.
Petroleum Development Oman, who traditionally rely on state funding, has turned to commercial banks for finance in the wake of lower oil prices, as the oil company seeks a $3 billion pre-export finance facility.
Turkey's largest private bank, İşbank, has increased the size of its annual revolving credit facility last week - a $1.4 billion syndicated loan with a record 47 international banks.
Two out of three people lack access to electricity in sub-Saharan Africa, but a new initiative, Scaling Solar, rolled out this week by the World Bank group aims to bridge this gap by supporting investments to build low cost, large-scale solar plants throughout the region.
The deal is indicative of how shipyards and shipbuilders are increasingly reliant on their buyers obtaining ECA-support to fill their order capacity while also encouraging commercial banks to lend in the shipping space.
Wind energy is the fastest growing source of electricity in Canada and is set to play a major role in the action plans of Québec's 2030 energy policy. The government-backed policy came exactly a month before last week's announcement that one of Canada's largest wind power projects closed a $617.5 million refinancing– in a deal backed by German ECA Euler Hermes.
In a bid to create new channels of future growth and provide new roadmaps for Indian exporters, India's Exim Bank has increased the amount of lines of credits it has issued over the past six months - as part of a government push to establish new trade relationships with its neighbouring countries and other emerging markets.
In late April, only four months after the trade embargo on Iran was lifted, Italy's Sace took the lead in the ECA space, guaranteeing €4 billion in credit lines to support trade between the two nations.
Varo Energy's $460m borrowing base formed part of the oil suppliers merger with Argos Downstream Europe, in a deal which will turn Varo into the largest independent Western European downstream player.
Earlier this month, Noble launched a $1 billion debt refinancing. With the facility due to close next week, the struggling commodities titan is eagerly awaiting Fitch’s verdict on the deal.
Winning TXF's Best African Commodity Finance Deal of the Year 2015, Columbus Stainless's $291.2 million borrowing base was the South African company's maiden syndicated commodity trade finance transaction.
K-sure's support of a $750 million loan to Reliance Jio Infocomm is the Korean ECA’s largest deal both in India and in the telecoms sector, with the transaction also boasting the longest tenor ever achieved in a telecoms deal.
In a deal that could set a precedent for future cruise ship deals, RCC tapped a innovative financing structure for the construction of Oasis IV by STX France.
In the face of precarious politics and a troubled economy, Argentina's largest soy bean producer Vicentin closed a $135.3 million PXF in the country's largest agribusiness deal of 2015.
Seaborn Networks secured an innovative project financing to fund the establishment of high-speed telecommunications infrastructure between US and Brazil.
TXF PRI: Trade, Commodity & Export Finance is taking place this February. Delve into the local market and make high-level contacts that might just lead to your next deal...
This virtual event will address those challenges head-on. We want to create an atmosphere that is inspiring and ideas led, that demonstrates the art of the possible for the export finance community.
Uniting the key players and deal makers across the Americas. This is your chance to stay connected and ahead of the curve!
Join us while we are looking into the commodity finance sector for the Asia Pacific region. Connect with key players and hear about current and future deals.
The destination for African export & project finance. Come together with deal makers across the region for virtual networking opportunities second to none .
TXF is introducing the 'Financing the Energy Transition' event, focusing on the latest updates and future plan of the energy transition.
We're proud to be bringing back TXF Global Commodity Finance, a must-attend event for the commodity finance community.
TXF invites you to join a dynamic group of export finance professionals to plot your ideas on where we're heading and how to get there
Fasten your seatbelt for the second leg of the ultimate export finance world tour, with stop-offs at Asia, Mena, Europe, Africa, and the Americas
This year's global trade virtual event will look into the impact of covid-19 to the market and explore new opportunities
Calling all changemakers in export finance! Join us to plot your ideas about diversity, sustainability and inclusion in the industry. If you are here to make a difference you are in the right place!
Your largest export, agency & project finance event returns to Madrid for 2021 after a 2020 virtual extravaganza! Industry renowned as the go-to for global export finance. Let the deal-making begin!
We are delighted to bring back this senior-level virtual event dedicated to the MENA region! Examine the regions' key trends and future opportunities whilst networking in a safe space.
A key event in the export, agency & project finance event calendar for senior and influential professionals working across the Asia-Pacific region. Networking and deal opportunities abound!