The US Export-Import (Ex-Im) Bank could be on the chopping block. And if it goes, so could some significant export deals which will impact logistics and trade. Officials and industry leaders flooded the media channels across Washington, DC the week of June 23rd, making their case in favor of retaining Ex-Im. Among them were members of the US Chamber of Commerce, the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), and the Coalition for Employment Through Exports, Inc (CEE). They, and a host of other Ex-Im advocates, are reacting to comments made by incoming Republican House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, who signaled a major shift when he called for the closure of the bank. Conservatives first targeted its elimination in 2012.  Ex-Im provides direct loans, guarantees, and credit insurance to aid foreign purchasers in buying American-made goods. Its charter expires at the end of September, unless Congress acts to renew it. A host of Congressional leaders sent a letter to McCarthy and Speaker of the House John Boehner on June 23 stating how the Ex-Im Bank plays an important role in supporting US exports. “In Fiscal Year 2013, for instance, Ex-Im enabled more than $37 billion in export sales from more than 3,800 US companies, supporting approximately 205,000 American jobs, all at no cost to the taxpayers,” they wrote. “Last year the bank set a new record in its support for small business, approving more than 3,400 small business transactions.” While Ex-Im is largely known for being used by large companies such as Boeing, Caterpillar, and General Electric and to score deals around the world, Thomas J. Donohue, president and CEO of the US Chamber of Commerce, stressed during a press conference that Ex-Im also impacts thousands of small businesses that depend on the Bank to be able to access foreign markets.  “Knowing all the value it adds to their businesses and the economy and even government coffers that realize a return on investment, they do not understand why Washington is threatening to let the bank charter lapse,” Donohue said.  NAM President and CEO Jay Timmons stated that his organization is putting together a “dream team” to fight any opposition to renewing the Ex-Im charter.  “The bank is such a focus for us because in the 21st Century economy, manufacturers need to sell to markets abroad,” said Timmons. “That’s where 95% of the world’s consumers can be found and competition for that business is incredible intense.” He pointed out how other countries make sure their businesses have the tools to compete. “Along with access to markets abroad, manufacturers need access to competitive financing to make sales abroad possible,” Timmons said. “The Ex-Im Bank is critical to leveling the playing field.” According to Timmons, there are 59 other export credit agencies around the world, many of which are larger and more generous than the Ex-Im Bank. “To close the bank would be an incredible gift from Congress to our competitors in other countries, and would result in the lost of exports, manufacturing and jobs here in the United States.”  He stressed that 3,000 small and medium size firms chose Ex-Im Bank to finance their exports because they cannot get financing anywhere else. “This is a source of financing that is incredibly important to small and medium-size firms and to all manufacturers.”  A host of manufacturers are also speaking out on the matter via CEE.  “If you remove Ex-Im from the picture, our company could shrink by 50 percent,” remarked James McDevitt, Chief Operations Officer of Applied Machinery in Houston, Texas. In his testimonial, McDevitt pointed out that his company spends $1 million to $2 million annually on steel alone. “The operation of transporting our equipment touches hundreds of others who support ports, shipping companies, and the countless others who support the biggest exporting industry in the country,” he said.  He revealed that the oil rigs Applied Machinery makes cost $14 million to $30 million each. “Customers need the financing to pay for them,” he said. “If the US cannot compete with the financing terms offered by China, the Chinese firms will win out.” Likewise, Jose Maya, director of trade finance for Latin America at Manitowoc Co. in Wisconsin, revealed that Ex-Im has been a key factor in his company’s growth, and essential when competing in fast-growing countries.  “We do on a monthly basis today what we previously did a full 10 years ago,” Maya said.  Manitowoc’s competitors come from countries including Germany and China whose governments are willing to aggressively provide financing to win a project. Maya reported that the company only uses the Ex-Im Bank when there are not other options available. “Nobody has enough cash in their pockets to say I want to spend $5 million on a crane,” he said.  Strategically, the Ex-Im Bank also plays a critical role. CEE President John Hardy stressed how the Ex-Im Bank must be at the center of this renewed effort to expand US trade and investment in sub-Saharan Africa.  “For US exporters of all shapes and sizes, the financing tools and the capacity to accelerate the US trade presence in the region hinges on the Bank,” he said. In a written statement, Hardy pointed out how Ex-Im is the only tool in the U.S. commercial arsenal that has the ability at this time to counter the Chinese, Indian and other interests that have committed hundreds of billions of dollars in infrastructure and industrial projects throughout the region. “Senior Chinese officials last year stated the Chinese government was committed to spending one trillion dollars in sub-Saharan Africa by 2025, with 70-80 percent coming from China’s Ex-Im Bank,” he said. If these arguments aren’t enough, Ex-Im Bank’s latest annual report states that over the past five years, it was responsible for supporting up to 1.2 million jobs. In 2013 alone, that number was 205,000, according to the bank. (By the way, the bank employs fewer than 500 people.) NAM’s Timmons is confident that if this issue gets to the floor of Congress, the charter will be renewed despite efforts by conservative groups that have launched campaigns to shut it down.