Jordan Times
Tuesday, January 13, 2004
US Export-Import Bank signs Master Guarantee Agreement with Housing Bank
By Ruba Saqr
AMMAN — The official US export credit agency, the Export-Import Bank (Ex-Im), on Monday signed a Master Guarantee Agreement (MGA) with Jordan's Housing Bank for Trade and Finance (HBTF) that will facilitate US exports to the Jordanian market.The HBTF is the first Jordanian bank to sign such an agreement with Ex-Im bank — following the signing of a "Framework Guarantee Agreement" between the Jordanian government and Ex-Im in April last year.
In the earlier accord, the two parties predicted requests for a total of up to $200 million in Ex-Im insurance and loan guarantees for individual, short-term transactions, according to Ex-Im's official website.
On Monday, US Ambassador to Jordan Edward Ghnem told reporters Jordanian purchases of US goods will be greatly simplified, saving the importer time and money because "behind the loans would be the guarantee of the United States."
"This agreement provides one more tool for US and Jordanian businesses to employ in developing and expanding ties," Ghnem said.
The agreement was signed by Zuhair Khoury, Housing Bank CEO, and April Foley, first vice president and vice chair of the Ex-Im.
On Ex-Im's choice of the Housing Bank as the first Jordanian financial institution to sign the MGA, Foley highlighted the credibility of the HBTF, adding "the Housing Bank was... the quickest to turn around their documents and to respond to our offer."
Analysts say the HBTF ranks second after the Arab Bank in the local market. The bank is owned by Kuwait (six per cent), Qatar (10 per cent), Oman (five per cent), Iran (three per cent), Libya (16 per cent), Jordan's Social Security Corporation (16 per cent) and Saudi businessman Khaled Ben Mahfouth (16 per cent).
Foley, who is in Jordan as a key speaker at the US-led OUTREACH 2004 exhibition gathering 300 international companies setting their eyes on opportunities in the reconstruction of Iraq, maintained that her institution is also working with "several other banks" to sign Master Guarantee Agreements.
Today Ex-Im is expected to sign a GMA with the Jordan National Bank.
On the value of the agreement with HBTF, Foley stated "there is no formal commitment of specific dollar amount."
According to Ghnem, Jordan-US bilateral trade reached approximately $1 billion in calendar year 2003, with approximately $600 million in Jordanian exports to the US and around $400 million in US exports to Jordan - making the US Jordan's number one export market and trade partner.
Before the war on Iraq, the former Baathist state used to be the Kingdom's largest trade partner.
Chartered by the US Congress and founded in 1934, Ex-Im Bank has the mission of financing the sales of US exports, primarily to developing markets, by providing guarantees, export credit insurance and loans, as well as creating more US jobs.
In December last year, Ex-Im Bank joined export credit agencies from 15 other nations in signing Framework Agreements with the Trade Bank of Iraq and the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA), providing for a total of more than $2 billion in support for the newly-founded Trade Bank to help facilitate Iraqi reconstruction.
Ex Im has helped finance more than $290 billion in US exports worldwide.