News

The Export-Import Bank of the United States (Ex-Im Bank) has approved a $110,000 short-term export credit insurance policy for the St. Louis, Mo. company, Mark Andy, Inc., the world's number one producer of narrow web printing equipment. The insurance transaction, which is the second between Mark Andy and Ex-Im Bank, is supporting the export of a industrial-sized in-line color-printing machine to Caracas, Venezuela. In early 2001, Ex-Im Bank provided Mark Andy with a $370,000 medium-term insurance policy for the sale of a narrow web printing press purchased in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

We recently have completed some key international financing contracts in a very timely and professional manner, thanks in part to the financial support we have received from Ex-Im Bank. Ex-Im Bank has been a solid resource for Mark Andy in helping us to establish a strong position in the global marketplace, stated Jeff Auton, finance manager for Mark Andy.

Ex-Im Bank's export credit insurance helps small businesses like Mark Andy to access emerging markets such as Venezuela and Brazil that offer tremendous potential for export growth. Our insurance gives companies the opportunity to realize their opportunities in global trade with confidence, said Ex-Im Bank D. Vanessa Weaver.

Founded in 1946, Mark Andy, which now employs more than 400 workers, has grown from a hometown business that developed and manufactured tape and multi-color label printing equipment to the international leader of the narrow web press market. In 1995, Mark Andy was acquired by Dover Corporation. In 2001, the company acquired Comco International, the second largest supplier of narrow and mid-web flexographic printing presses for packaging applications.

Ex-Im Bank's export credit insurance protects U.S. exporters and lenders against the risks of a foreign buyer defaulting on payment for either commercial or political reasons. Additional benefits include the ability to offer foreign buyers competitive terms of payment, to assign proceeds of policies to a financial institution, and to access working capital by enabling banks to discount foreign accounts receivable or include them in the collateral base.

Ex-Im Bank is an independent U.S. government agency that helps finance the sale of U.S. exports primarily to emerging markets throughout the world, by providing loans, guarantees, and export credit insurance. Ex-Im Bank supported $15.5 billion in U.S. exports in fiscal year 2000.