News

Washington, D.C. - Wiggins Lift Co. Inc., a small-business manufacturer in Oxnard, Calif., is exporting its forklifts to marinas in Brazil with the support of medium-term buyer financing being guaranteed by the Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM Bank) from Northstar Trade Finance Inc. in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Northstar - which was awarded EXIM’s Lender of the Year award in April - is providing approximately $1.4 million in EXIM-backed medium-term loans to finance the export of Wiggins Lift’s forklifts to three Brazilian borrowers: BR Marina Group S.A., Marina Verolme S.A. and Marina Porto Bracuhy Ltda. The exports sales are helping to sustain an estimated 30 jobs at the company.

“To compete successfully in global markets, exporters need to be able to offer their foreign buyers competitive financing terms in addition to a quality product or service,” said EXIM Bank Chairman and President Fred P. Hochberg. “Through EXIM’s Medium-Term Delegated Authority Program, we work with commercial lenders to empower small businesses such as Wiggins Lift to make sales on longer repayment terms and increase their exports.”

“EXIM’s guarantee is a positive for everyone. It facilitated competitive financing from Northstar for these marinas in Brazil and enabled them to purchase our world-class lifts. In turn, these sales are helping us continue to grow, add employees and contribute to the U.S. economy,” said Wiggins Lift CEO Michele McDowell.

“We at Northstar are pleased to support Wiggins Lift in these exports to Brazil. EXIM’s Medium-Term Delegated Authority Program is a powerful tool that enables American exporters to offer their customers a complete sales solution and to compete more effectively against their foreign competitors who offer financing,” said Northstar’s Craig MacKenzie, managing director, North America.

MacKenzie noted that the delegated authority program enables Northstar to significantly “speed up” the credit decision and approval process to a few days, which enables exporters to offer financing to their customers in a timely way.

Wiggins Lift Co. Inc. designs and manufactures custom heavy-lifting equipment for applications in the marine, mining, military, agriculture and other industries. Wiggins Lift was founded in the 1950s in Oxnard, Calif., where it currently employs over 50 workers. The woman-owned company is led by the founder’s granddaughter.
Northstar’s international trade finance includes a strategic approach to developing effective public-partnerships with key government agencies and departments, particularly successful in the provision of trade-related financing and insurance/guarantee solutions. Northstar’s partners include top financial institutions in North America and leading government agencies and credit insurers in Canada, the United States, Europe and Australia, among other countries.

EXIM Bank’s Medium Term Delegated Authority (MTDA) program enables the lender to make a commitment based on a set of defined parameters if they agree to share risk. The applications are made through EXIM’s online system, and transactions are authorized by the lender. Applications that are determined to be complete are generally made operative within five business days.
ABOUT EX-IM BANK:

EXIM Bank is an independent federal agency that supports and maintains U.S. jobs by filling gaps in private export financing at no cost to American taxpayers. The Bank provides a variety of financing mechanisms, including working capital guarantees, direct loans and export-credit insurance, to promote the sale of U.S. goods and services abroad. Ninety percent of its transactions directly serve American small businesses.

In fiscal year 2014, EXIM Bank approved $20.5 billion in total authorizations. These authorizations supported an estimated $27.5 billion in U.S. export sales, as well as approximately 164,000 American jobs in communities across the country.

Small-business exporters can learn about how EXIM Bank products can empower them to increase foreign sales by clicking here. For more information about EXIM, visit www.exim.gov.

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