The Export-Import Bank (EXIM) of the United States’ board of directors has unanimously voted to approve the Make More in America Initiative, a new tool that will unlock financing for U.S. manufacturing, strengthen America’s global competitiveness, close critical supply chain gaps and support domestic jobs.
Make More in America will immediately make available EXIM’s existing medium- and long-term loans and loan guarantees for export-oriented domestic manufacturing projects as part of President Biden’s whole-of-government efforts to strengthen the resiliency and security of America’s supply chains.
“The Make More in America Initiative will create new financing opportunities that spur manufacturing in the United States, support American jobs and boost America’s ability to compete with countries like China,” EXIM president and chair Reta Jo Lewis said. “The global pandemic and other recent events have exposed supply chain gaps in critical sectors like advanced manufacturing and renewable energy. EXIM’s Make More in America Initiative will be a key tool in tackling these issues, and it will ultimately help America manufacture more and export more.”
Peter Harrell, special assistant to the President and National Security Council senior director for international economics and competitiveness, said since Biden took office, the president has prioritized addressing the longer-term weaknesses in the nation’s supply chains, “the result of decades of underinvestment, outsourcing and offshoring.”
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“To solve this problem, America needs to leverage every one of our nation’s tools and I am pleased that EXIM has moved this initiative forward,” Harrell said.
The Make More in America Initiative was developed in response to Biden’s executive order on “American Supply Chains” and provides U.S. manufacturers new access to capital to fill critical supply chain gaps. The initiative will incentivize applications in environmentally beneficial, small business and transformational export transactions, including semiconductors, biotech and biomedical products, renewable energy and energy storage.
Make More in America financing, which complements EXIM’s existing foreign buyer financing programs and other government programs, will spur growth and security of critical supply chains in ways that support meeting EXIM’s core mission of supporting U.S. jobs.
An amendment pushed by EXIM board director Rep. Spencer Bachus (R.-Ala.) strengthened transparency and Congressional reporting measures by requiring board approval for any changes to the initiative and providing Congress advance notice of any domestic finance transaction over $50 million, in addition to EXIM’s statutory requirement to notify Congress for all traditional transactions over $100 million.
EXIM is the nation’s official export credit agency with the mission of supporting American jobs by facilitating U.S. exports. To advance American competitiveness and assist U.S. businesses as they compete for global sales, EXIM offers financing including export credit insurance, working capital guarantees, loan guarantees and direct loans. As an independent federal agency, EXIM contributes to U.S. economic growth by supporting tens of thousands of jobs in exporting businesses and their supply chains across the United States. Since 1992, EXIM has generated more than $9 billion for the U.S. Treasury for repayment of U.S. debt.