United States Government Publishing Office publisher pbl distributor dst United States Government Accountability Office National Security and International Affairs Division author aut Government Organization text government publication eng GAOREPORTS Legislative Agency Publications gao legislative 2010-08-12 U.S. Government Printing Office 1996-12-20 monographic deposited born digital 51 p. GA 1.13:NSIAD-97-7 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-NSIAD-97-7 P0b002ee18038e3e7 f:ns97007 DGPO 2010-08-12 2011-03-23 GAOREPORTS-NSIAD-97-7 machine generated eng fdlp REPORT GAOREPORTS-NSIAD-97-7 NSIAD-97-7 Off-budget federal entities Exporting Foreign loans Credit Appropriated funds Subsidies International economic relations International cooperation Foreign trade policies Cost control OMB Interagency Country Risk Assessment System European Union China Mexico Russia Letter Report NSIAD

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed: (1) how the Export-Import Bank of the United States (Eximbank) spends its program appropriation; (2) program options that the Eximbank may want to consider to reduce the cost of its export financing programs; (3) potential implications of these options; and (4) the nature and extent of Eximbank's involvement in a type of financing known as project financing.<p/>GAO found that: (1) in each of the last 5 fiscal years (FY) 1992 through 1996, the Eximbank has used an average of $750 million of its credit subsidy appropriation to support an average of $13.3 billion in export loans, loan guarantees, and insurance; (2) the appropriations have facilitated exports to areas with important U.S. commercial and strategic interests; (3) high risk markets constituted a relatively small share, 13 percent, of the Eximbank's total financing commitments, yet absorbed a relatively large share, 44 percent, of its subsidy costs in FY 1995; (4) two broad options that would allow the Eximbank to reduce subsidies while remaining competitive with foreign export credit agencies (ECA) include raising fees for services and reducing risks of its programs by, for example, capping the maximum allowable subsidies offered, limiting program availability in certain high-risk markets, or offering less than 100-percent risk protection; (5) Eximbank officials said any proposed fee increases need to be considered within the broader context of current international efforts to gradually reduce government export finance subsidies, and that these options could make Eximbank programs less competitive relative to other ECAs, but acknowledged that it would be difficult to determine the precise trade effects of these options; (6) Eximbank officials also noted that these program options would undermine U.S. government efforts to provide support in some higher-risk markets, such as the newly independent states of the former Soviet Union, which they said hold promising long-term trade potential; and (7) in FY 1993, the Eximbank supported $150 million in project finance transactions, $2.1 billion in FY 1995, and $1.6 billion in FY 1996. https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-NSIAD-97-7/html/GAOREPORTS-NSIAD-97-7.htm https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-NSIAD-97-7/pdf/GAOREPORTS-NSIAD-97-7.pdf GAO/NSIAD-97-7 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-NSIAD-97-7 Letter Report GAO/NSIAD-97-7; Export-Import Bank: Options for Achieving Possible Budget Reductions; Off-budget federal entities Exporting Foreign loans Credit Appropriated funds Subsidies International economic relations International cooperation Foreign trade policies Cost control OMB Interagency Country Risk Assessment System European Union China Mexico Russia Title 12 Section 635 Title 12 Section 635(b)(1)(A) 12 U.S.C. 635 12 U.S.C. 635(b)(1)(A) Public Law 101-508 Public Law 102-429