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The chairman of the Export-Import Bank of the United States was at Gulfstream Aerospace headquarters in Savannah Friday to announce that the bank has topped $1 billion in financing support of American-made business aircraft and helicopters since the beginning of fiscal 2012.
Ex-Im Bank is an independent federal agency that creates and maintains U.S. jobs by filling gaps in private export financing at no cost to American taxpayers. At the European Business Convention and Exhibition in May 2012, bank chairman Fred P. Hochberg announced that Ex-Im Bank would provide support for at least $1 billion in business-aircraft and helicopter financings by the end of 2014.
The deal that helped push the bank over that goal well in advance was its approval of a $300 million guarantee on a loan to Minsheng Financial Leasing Co. Ltd. of Tianjin, China, last December to finance the purchase of eight aircraft manufactured in Savannah by Gulfstream.
“Business aircraft is a great example of a homegrown American industry that is creating jobs in communities across the country,” Hochberg said, a sentiment seconded by Gulfstream president Larry Flynn.
“In 2008, we had 10 Gulfstream aircraft based in China,” Flynn said. “Today, this number has grown to more than 80 aircraft.
“The support that Gulfstream receives from Ex-Im Bank allows us to be more competitive around the world and has enabled us to grow the number of employees in the U.S.
“There’s a direct correlation between the sales and financing of new planes and jobs,” he said. Minsheng’s purchase of four Gulfstream G450s and four G550s helped support more than 2,100 U.S. jobs, Hochberg said, most of them in Savannah.
Gulfstream’s three main competitors in the manufacturing of high-end business jets are Bombardier in Canada, Dassault in France and Embraer in Brazil.
“Each of these countries supports their business jet manufacturing industry with solid financing tools,” Flynn said. “If our country did not support us through the Export-Import Bank, we would be at a distinct disadvantage.
Hochberg agreed.
“Despite an increase in the number of foreign competitors, America’s business-jet manufacturers continue to demonstrate the advantages of manufacturing high-technology, high-quality products in the USA,” he said. “Our loan guarantee, which pushes us over the $1 billion threshold for business-aircraft and helicopter financings months before our in-house deadline, will boost the export of eight of these state-of-the-art, American-made business jets to China and bolster U.S. jobs in Georgia.
“It is great to see that, even in this competitive global marketplace, the Chinese continue to buy American.”
Also on hand for the bank’s announcement Friday was Marion Blakey, president and CEO of the Aerospace Industries Association.
Calling Gulfstream a phenomenal company, Blakey said the business jet manufacturer represents “the kind of excellence that truly personifies our industry at its best.”
In today’s competitive international marketplace, U.S. manufacturers need a level playing field in order to penetrate emerging markets, Blakey said.
“With more than 59 foreign export credit agencies supporting their own country’s interests, it’s imperative that U.S. companies have ready access to the capital that allows them to compete fairly,” she said.
“That’s why the Ex-Em Bank is an essential partner for America’s job-creating manufacturers and the many supply chain companies that support them.”