EXIM Bank's Key Priorities: U.S. Small Businesses and Exporters

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EXIM equips American exporters with the financing tools necessary to compete for global sales. Whether you need protection from commercial or political risks, access to cash flow, or help with credit terms, EXIM has you covered.

Are you ready to begin your export journey?  Then explore EXIM's offerings.

It's Complicated: How to Mitigate the Coming Tariff Increases

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The following was authored by Sandler, Travis & Rosenberg pre-election.

"The Biden administration has not only determined to maintain all existing Section 301 tariffs on imports from China but is expected to increase some of them in the near future. Sandler, Travis & Rosenberg goes on to say – and this was written pre-election:

Further, former president Donald Trump is threatening to more than double those tariffs and impose duties of 10-20 percent on all U.S. imports if he is elected [as of 11/5/24 Trump was re-elected] this November. 

However, there are a number of proven and legitimate ways for importers, exporters, and manufacturers to effectively escape or limit the impact of these tariffs."

Let's figure this out.

Startup in Shanghai Poised to Solve Cross-border Payment Problems and Boost International Trade

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XTransfer, based in Shanghai, China, aims to solve cross-border payment problems for over 100,000 of China’s smaller importers and exporters playing important roles in the national economy in spite of challenges posed by the pandemic and trade disputes.

XTransfer was founded in 2017 by several Alibaba employees and works with banks to set up a globally unified B2B (business to business) financial network and intelligent risk management system. 

Learn more here.

Mastercard Track™: Streamline Management of Payments

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Mastercard's newest offering will enhance your cash flow visibility and reduce the need for payment status inquiries to customers. Mastercard Track™ aggregates payment timing and rich remittance details across your customers, all in one place.

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Will it be good for small businesses?  According to the Small Business Trend's report:

By removing the manual processes of identifying and validating suppliers as well as outdated payment systems, Mastercard Track looks to lower the billions of dollars in cost associated with global trade.

Learn more about how Mastercard and Microsoft are teaming up to help small businesses become exporters.

Hopefully their solution will simplify the process of doing business around the world.

Step Onto the Global Stage

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U.S. Small Business Administration leader Linda McMahon says:

“Businesses that export are less likely to go out of business and more likely to grow faster,” said McMahon in a speech during the Small Business Knowledge Summit on Thursday. “That’s because 96 percent of all the world’s consumers and over three-quarters of the world’s purchasing power are outside the United States. Yet right now, only 1 percent of all of America’s small businesses are exporters.”

The numbers haven't changed much since the Obama administration days but nevertheless, small businesses forge on.  And what's the single biggest reason for SMEs not trading globally?  Lack of international business experience and knowledge.  It's obvious they haven't read this book.

Learn more ...

The Second-Highest Number of Exporters in the United States?

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Florida boasts the second-highest number of exporters in the United States, and in 2013, the United Arab Emirates was the state's eighth-highest merchandise export destination.

Exposure to international buyers is crucial to the success of small business owners and allows them to grow and create jobs.

That said, Enterprise Florida Inc. will host Florida small businesses at the Oct. 18-22 GITEX Technology Week in Dubai, an annual event that attracts more than 143,000 professionals from around the world from nearly 150 countries.

Learn more here.

Outliers: Exporters Are a Breed Apart

Small Businesses Thrive in the International Marketplace (Video)

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A video, "Small Businesses That Are Thriving in the International Marketplace," features three small business owners (noted below) who reveal why foreign trade is vital to the growth and success of their companies. The video underscores the importance of trade and highlights how small businesses are engaged in the global economy.

Each of the companies also share how they are able to export their products to highly competitive markets such as Mexico and China.

1. Drew Greenblat of Marlin Steel
2. Roy Paulson of Paulson Manufacturing
3. Robert Patton of Patton Electronics

WATCH the video here.

And there's more!

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has also updated its TradeSupportsJobs.com, an interactive site that shows how exports drive economic growth and support jobs in all 50 states and all 435 congressional districts. The site breaks down the value of exports to every state by total dollar amount, by industry sector, and by the number of jobs directly supported by exports.

Foreign Exchange Precautions for Exporters

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Canada perspective: Virtually every business in Canada is affected by the ever-changing value of the dollar. While many of us consider this unpredictability a nuisance, the volatility of the Canadian dollar and other currencies around the world can mean the difference between success and failure for many exporters.

Read the article here.

United States perspective: Exports are improving. The Bush administration hopes a falling dollar will boost export trade by making U.S. exports cheaper for foreigners and goods made abroad more expensive for Americans. The dollar began falling late last year. Since the start of April, its drop has accelerated against a variety of currencies, from the euro to the yen.

Bottom line: Understanding foreign exchange risk is critical to any export venture.