GTR Trade Finance eNews - October 2009
HSBC secures first with renminbi deal in Thailand
HSBC has become the first bank in Thailand to successfully complete a renminbi-denominated trade settlement for one of the bank’s corporate clients.
Italy's Sace backs Gazprom loan
The Italian export credit agency Sace has approved a guarantee on a €408mn loan granted to Gazprom, a loan which will help support the Nord Stream pipeline project.
Santander expands export finance team
Spanish bank Santander has made two new appointments to its export finance team.
SEB hires in Denmark
SEB has hired Flemming Lippert to be responsible for the growth of its trade finance business in Denmark.
Thomas Cooper makes new hire
Law firm Thomas Cooper has hired Simon Murfit to its finance group in London.
Oil refiner PKN Orlen selects RBS for cash management
Polish oil company PKN Orlen, one of Central Europe’s largest refiners of crude oil, has chosen RBS to fulfil its domestic liquidity management requirements.
Rosemount's Fields moves on
After four years at Rosemount Capital Management as managing director, Bruce Fields has moved to International Assets Holding Corporation.
Troika Dialog seeks to support Russia-Africa trade
Russian investment bank Troika Dialog is looking to facilitate trade and investment flows between Russia and Africa.
Noble closes landmark Asia Pacific syndication
The Singapore-listed commodities trading company Noble Group has closed syndication on two revolving credit facilities.
Evraz signs credit facility with Gazprombank
Russian steel producer Evraz has signed three credit facility agreements with Gazprombank, for a total amount of US$950mn for a period of 45 months.
JP Morgan expands Latin American presence
JP Morgan's treasury services business has made its treasury management solutions available locally to clients in, or doing business in, Brazil.
JBIC loans to India’s Toshiba
The Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) has signed a US$90mn loan agreement with India’s Toshiba JSW Turbine and Generator (TJTG).
Giek and Sinosure sign agreement
Norwegian export credit agency Giek has entered into an agreement with Sinosure, its Chinese counterpart.
ECAs sign reciprocal reinsurance agreements
Australia’s Export Finance and Insurance Corporation (EFIC), France’s Coface and the US Ex-Im have signed reciprocal reinsurance agreements.
Trafigura signs oversubscribed export facility
International commodities trading company Trafigura has closed a two-year US$125mn syndicated export prepayment facility.
Business groups reiterate worries over Kazakh debt
A coalition of 15 business and financial services and trade associations have sent a letter to the Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev outlining their concerns on the debt restructuring plans being considered in the Kazakh banking sector.
Iraqi delegation seeks investment at US meeting
Opportunities to invest in Iraq were highlighted at a conference hosted in Washington DC this week.
Finnvera president to chair a Berne Union committee
Topi Vesteri, executive vice-president responsible for export financing at Finnvera, has been elected chair of the medium/long term committee of the Berne Union.
EFIC increases value of new facilities for exporters
Australia's EFIC has increased the value of the new facilities it provided to assist Australian businesses exporting and investing overseas by 56% in the last financial year.
Noble Group adopts Bolero system
The global commodities firm Noble Group is to implement Bolero’s multi-bank trade finance service in support of both letters of credit and guarantees.
BExA launches cashflow guide for UK exporters
The British Exporters Association (BExA) has launched the new ‘Guide to Financing Exports’.
Sace to strengthen its role in Asia Pacific
Italian export credit agency Sace has celebrated its three years' presence in Hong Kong and reaffirmed its strategic support to South and Eastern Asia.
UK and South Korea legal services get boost
UK law firms look set to benefit from the Law Society International Division’s efforts to open up the South Korean legal services market.
ICIEC joins the Berne Union
The Berne Union has confirmed the Islamic Corporation for the Insurance of Investment & Export Credit (ICIEC), as a permanent member.
IFC supports Argentinean aluminium exports
IFC is providing US$25mn in an equity investment to Aluar Aluminio Argentino, Argentina’s sole aluminium producer.
Nordex signs up to GlobalTrade system
Nordex will use the the GlobalTrade Corporation’s @GlobalTrade guarantee issuance system to optimise its guarantee business and its communication with banks.
More Raiffeisen banks join IFC's trade programme
IFC is partnering with Raiffeisen International Bank to expand access to trade finance through its network banks in Russia, the Czech Republic and Bosnia and Herzegovina.
US Ex-Im opens for private sector transactions in Cambodia
US Ex-Im will provide financing for purchases of US exports by private sector buyers in Cambodia on repayment terms of up to seven years.
ECGD launches LC guarantee scheme
ECGD has launched a letter of credit (LC) guarantee scheme to assist UK exporters by boosting the availability of short-term export finance.
FIMBank targets Romanian factoring market
FIMbank is looking to increase its presence in the Romanian factoring market, having recently hosted a conference in Bucharest.
EBRD loan supports Noble Group in Ukraine
The EBRD is providing a US$50mn financing programme to Noble Resources Ukraine, for the origination, storage, and export of agricultural commodities.
MDM loan closes oversubscribed
Russia’s MDM Bank has closed a US$175mn-equivalent dual-currency loan oversubscribed.
EBRD sees fragile recovery in 2010
The economies of Central and Eastern Europe are expected to contract by an average of 6.3% in 2009 following steep output declines in the first half of the year.
Ofid approves credit facility for Amrahbank
Azerbaijan bank Amrahbank has secured a US$2mn credit facility from the Opec Fund for International Development (Ofid).
Pakistani banks win trade support from Asian Development Bank
Bank Alfalah, Faysal Bank, Habib Metropolitan Bank and United Bank have signed trade financing agreements with the Asian Development Bank (ADB).
US Ex-Im hits financing high
US Ex-Im has achieved its highest financing level yet, authorising more than US$21bn in support of US exports during the fiscal year just concluded.
Emirates sets benchmark in airline financing
The Dubai-based Emirates airline has set a new benchmark in airline financing through its inaugural US bond offering guaranteed by US Ex-Im.
Millicom secures refinancing for Central American acquisition
Telecoms firm Millicom International Cellular has obtained a US$250mn syndicated term loan to refinance a bridge loan used to acquire a Central American broadband and cable TV operator.
Miga and DIFC collaborate on Mena investment
The Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) and Miga have signed an agreement to promote FDI into the Middle East and North Africa.
Promoting exports is the 'key way' to beat UK recession
The UK’s shadow minister for international trade and development, Geoffrey Clifton-Brown, has declared that increasing UK exports is the key to pulling the country out of recession.
Gallagher London hires new trade credit team
Insurance broker Gallagher London is expanding into the trade credit insurance market by hiring a new trade credit team.
Miga and Jbic promote investment in developing countries
Miga and Jbic will cooperate to promote private sector investment in developing countries through a joint memorandum of understanding.
ABC International signs Jaguar finance deal
London-based ABC International Bank has completed a new US$90mn committed trade financing facility for Jaguar Land Rover.
BNDES disbursements reach record high
Disbursements for the Brazilian development bank (BNDES) reached R$84.2bn (US$48.3bn) for the first eight months of 2009.
EFIC supports Austal ferry export
Australia’s EFIC has helped Austal win an A$74.7mn contract to provide high-speed passenger catamaran ferries to the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago.
Alliance Bank signs restructuring termsheet
Kazakhstan’s Alliance Bank has signed a termsheet with its creditors’ steering committee finalising the terms of its proposed restructuring.
EKN changes policy for LatAm countries
Swedish export credit agency EKN has changed its policy for both Argentina and Venezuela during its September review of countries in Latin America.
Egypt's EGPC closes PXF
BTMU and Morgan Stanley have closed a US$900mn 42-month pre-export finance term loan facility in favour of the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation as the exporter.
Afreximbank and Ecobank to cooperate on trade finance
Ecobank and Afreximbank have signed an agreement that will enable deeper cooperation between both institutions in the areas of trade and project finance.
Fitch rates Afreximbank BBB-
Fitch Ratings has assigned the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) ratings of long-term issuer default (IDR) 'BBB-' and short-term IDR 'F3'.
Proctor joins Bank of America Merrill Lynch
Bank of America Merrill Lynch has appointed Bruce Proctor as trade and supply chain product management executive.
Singapore's export coverage scheme launches top up facility
International Enterprise (IE), Singapore’s export coverage scheme (ECS) has launched a top-up facility that will allow companies to increase their trade credit insurance.
RusAg and Citi sign trade finance agreement
Russian Agricultural Bank (RusAg) has signed an agreement for the financing of trade operations of its customers with Citibank Europe.
French short-term export credit insurance scheme approved
The European Commission has authorised a measure aimed at limiting the adverse impact of the current financial crisis on export firms.
IFIs renew support of Central and Eastern Europe
The EBRD, EIB Group, and the World Bank Group have warned against complacency in the face of challenges that stand in the way of economic recovery in Central and Eastern Europe.
UAE's Etihad Airways signs first ECA deal
Etihad Airways, the United Arab Emirates’ (UAE) national airline, has signed its first export credit guaranteed transaction.
EBRD backs Turkey's agriculture sector with credit line
The EBRD is supporting the development of private businesses in the agriculture sector in Turkey with a TL43mn (€20mn) credit line for micro and small enterprises (MSEs).
Thailand Exim appoints new head of export credit insurance
Thailand Exim has appointed Warangkana Wongkhaluang as executive vice-president overseeing export credit insurance and international project operations.
Bank of America Merrill Lynch launches new online tool
Bank of America Merrill Lynch is launching its new CashPro online banking channel.
Ukraine's OTP Bank wins IFC support
The IFC is providing a US$20mn trade finance guarantee to Ukraine’s OTP Bank to help it expand its foreign trade financing.
Emerging markets lead revival in manufacturing
Manufacturing output from key emerging markets has seen its strongest quarterly increase since the second quarter of 2008, according to HSBC’s quarterly emerging markets index (EMI).
Brazil's CSN secures export credit lines
Brazilian steel manufacturer Companhia Siderurgica Nacional (CSN) has set up export credit lines worth R1.3bn (US$736mn) with two Brazilian banks.
Standard Chartered and OFID launch trade finance offering
Standard Chartered Bank has signed a new US$500mn risk-sharing programme with the OPEC Fund for International Development (Ofid).
Standard and JBIC sign African trade finance loan
Standard Bank and the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) have signed a US$150mn loan aimed at boosting trade finance in Africa.
Baft appoints new board members
The Bankers' Association for Finance and Trade (Baft) has appointed two new members to its board of directors.
AfDB launches first GTLP transaction
The AfDB will celebrate the launch of the first transaction under the global trade liquidity programme (GTLP), with Standard Bank South Africa (SBSA) in Istanbul.
