MEDIA RELEASE PR39991
Ex-Im Bank, Vietnamese Government Agree to USD$500 Million Financing Facility to
Increase U.S. Exports to Vietnam
HANOI, Vietnam, June 15 /PRNewswire-AsiaNet/ --
The Export-Import Bank of the United States (Ex-Im Bank) and the government of
Vietnam have agreed to a USD$500 million financing facility to boost sales of U.S.
equipment and services to Vietnam for high-priority infrastructure projects, backed
by Ex-Im Bank financing.
Ex-Im Bank Chairman and President Fred P. Hochberg today signed a memorandum of
understanding with Vietnam Development Bank General Director Nguyen Quang Dung during
a three-day visit to Vietnam. Senior representatives of the Office of the Government
and the Ministry of Finance witnessed the signing.
"Vietnam is one of the world's key growing economies. Ex-Im Bank is pleased to
provide a USD$500 million financing facility to support the nation's infrastructure
growth through the purchase of U.S. goods and services by the government and private
companies," Hochberg said. "This agreement is a continuation of the increasingly
close ties that have been established between our countries starting in 1995. It
expresses our readiness to help finance Vietnam's infrastructure development in key
sectors such as communications, transportation including highway and rail projects,
renewable energy and other types of power, wastewater treatment, and medical
equipment and services."
Ex-Im Bank opened in Vietnam for short- and medium-term financing in 1998 and
expanded the relationship in subsequent years with new agreements. A Framework
Guarantee Agreement with the State Bank of Vietnam facilitated the issuance of
Vietnamese Government guarantees so that Vietnamese buyers could obtain U.S. goods
and services with Ex-Im Bank support. A Project Incentive Agreement between the
governments of the two countries supported limited-recourse project finance
transactions in Vietnam, where repayment is based on project revenues rather than a
guarantee from the national government.
The Vietnam and U.S. governments passed a Bilateral Trade Agreement in December
2001. In December 2006, Vietnam gained Permanent Normalized Trade Relations with the
United States, and in January 2007, Vietnam became the 150th member of the World
Trade Organization.
Under the new memorandum of understanding, Ex-Im Bank and the Vietnam Development
Bank agree to share information on trade and business opportunities to facilitate the
sale of equipment and services from the United States to Vietnam.
Chairman Hochberg is meeting with a wide range of public and private sector
leaders during his stays in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. He will call on Vietnamese
Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung and meet with the Ministry of Trade and Industry, the
Ministry of Transport, the Ministry of Finance, and the Ministry for Planning and
Investment.
He also will meet with Vietnam Airlines Corp., participate in roundtables with
Vietnamese CEOs and bankers, and address the Hanoi American Chamber of Commerce in a
luncheon.
Ex-Im Bank is the official export-credit agency of the United States. The
independent, self-sustaining federal government agency helps to create and maintain
U.S. jobs by financing the sales of U.S. exports, primarily to emerging markets
throughout the world, providing loan guarantees, export-credit insurance and direct
loans. Ex-Im Bank's exposure in Vietnam currently totals $231 million.
More information is available on the Bank's web site at www.exim.gov, or by
calling in the United States 1-800-565-3946 (1-800-565-EXIM). Vietnamese companies
interested in purchasing U.S. goods and services supported by Ex-Im Bank financing
may contact Ms. Tuyet Trees of the U.S. Foreign Commercial Service in Hanoi by email
(Tuyet.Trees@mail.doc.gov) or in Ho Chi Minh City James Mayfield
(james.mayfield@mail.doc.gov).
SOURCE: Export-Import Bank of the United States
CONTACT: Phil Cogan in Vietnam,
01-202-746-1676 (mobile),
or Marianna Ohe,
+1-202-565-3200
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