美国联邦机构EXIM提供的金融产品使美国公司有能力与外国竞争对手竞争并赢得更多的国际销售。
By James Burrows
T在美国Sta extile和服装公司tes are benefiting from exporting; it’s a great means of boosting the bottom line and growing a business. According to the Washington-based National Council of Textile Organizations, the United States’ exports of textiles and apparel accounted for $28.6 billion worth of economic activity in 2017.
出口在使美国经济摆脱经济衰退方面发挥了重要作用，不仅是主要公司受益。美国商务部报告说，少于500名员工的中小型企业占美国出口商的近98％。
Exporting offers plenty of benefits and opportunities, including:
- Accessing more consumers and businesses — If a company is only doing business domestically, it may be limiting its potential profits by not expanding worldwide. It can also help in offloading excess production.
- 降低单位成本 - 出口有助于使闲置生产能力工作并提高效率。
- 通过地理多样化扩散风险 - 出口与股票投资组合相似。当国内经济步履蹒跚时，该公司可能会依靠其他不断增长的市场。出口还可以最大程度地减少季节性销售的影响并延长销售周期。
- 扩大成熟产品的生命周期 - 如果美国市场充满了公司的产品，则可以在世界其他地区出售。
纺织行业的精明和战略经理正在通过针对居住在美国以外的95％的世界消费者来提高收入。他们在北美自由贸易协定（NAFTA）和中美洲共和国自由贸易协定（CAFTA-DR）地区以及亚洲和欧洲市场上出售商品。
尽管出口并不是什么新鲜事物，但许多小型企业和公司高管仍然不愿出售海外，或者可能只向他们舒适的一个或两个市场出售。通常，这是因为出口被认为太繁重或冒险。自然，出口来自包括财务风险，存在一些复杂性。由于如果海外客户没有为已经发货的商品付费，那么美国出口商几乎没有追索权，因此很容易理解为什么获得报酬是美国公司将商品和服务销售给国际市场的主要问题。好消息是提供帮助。
Selling On Open Account
有一个很好的解决这个问题buyer nonpayment: the Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM). EXIM, a U.S. federal government agency, offers financial products that empower U.S. companies to compete with foreign competitors — many of whom have similar backing by their home governments — and win more international sales.
EXIM的出口信用保险是美国出口商中流行的产品。保险单可保护由从美国公司向国际客户出售商品和服务产生的外国应收账款。该政策涵盖了由于商业造成的未付款的销售发票的95％，例如破产和持久违约，例如战争或叛乱等政治风险。
Export credit insurance also improves textile companies’ competitiveness in the world market. While many American exporting companies resort to cash in advance to avoid nonpayment risk, most foreign competitors are able to offer open account credit terms, which are significantly more attractive to potential buyers. They expect credit terms and companies that are unable to extend credit may lose out on valuable opportunities.
出口信用保险使美国企业与外国买家提前协商信用条款（通常在30、60或90天内），这是一种强大的营销工具，可以成为赢得交易的竞争优势。Exim可以涵盖公司的整个客户或单一买家的投资组合。
In addition to reducing the risk of nonpayment and offering open account credit terms to foreign buyers, EXIM’s export credit insurance can enhance a company’s borrowing capacity by assigning now secured foreign receivables to a lender, improving liquidity and easing cash flow constraints.
EXIM Customer Stories
Between 2015 and 2017, EXIM has supported more than $253 million in exports of U.S. textiles and apparel to international markets, ensuring that American textile and apparel products can be worn around the world.
The agency’s support is available to businesses of all sizes. In fact, small businesses comprise 91 percent of EXIM’s total authorizations, and no transaction is too small.
纺织品和服装公司已经使用了外部保险。
Northfield, Vt.-based Darn Tough Vermont, a Cabot Hosiery Mills brand, already was exporting and offering its distributors 30-day open account credit terms, but two things were on their minds — inklings of potential problems with payment from one international source, and an upcoming trade conference to discuss deals with new distributors.
With the protection of EXIM’s export credit insurance, Darn Tough Vermont representatives were able to negotiate payment terms with new international distributors, secure in the knowledge that the receivables were insured against nonpayment and covered for commercial and political risks. In addition, export credit insurance bought the management team peace of mind, knowing they had decreased the risk of payment problems from a potentially shaky partner.
“得益于Exim出色的出口保险计划，Darn Tough Vermont在实现全球品牌认可和国际市场上实质性增长的目标方面非常出色。”
Jefferson, Ga.-based Buhler Quality Yarns Corp. sells cotton yarns to Central America, and its product can be found in Lacoste™ polo shirts, T-shirts, and other clothing. The company needed to find other avenues of providing payment terms to new companies beyond requiring cash in advance. EXIM export credit insurance allowed the company to sell on open account credit terms and cover the risks in emerging markets. “EXIM allows us flexibility to go after business in international markets,” said David Sasso, International sales manager, Buhler Quality Yarns Corp. “EXIM understands companies and empowers them to have continued growth.”
Ben Kaufman Sales Co. a distributor of towels and apparel to Caribbean countries, also has benefitted from EXIM support. With an EXIM export credit insurance policy, Ben Kaufman Sales mitigated the risk of nonpayment and eased the company’s initial concern about expanding into riskier international markets. Its foreign accounts are protected from potential losses that could result from an international business deal gone awry. As a result, exports now account for 20 percent of the company’s sales.
EXIM can help companies of all sizes boost sales while protecting financial assets. Contact EXIM to learn more.
编者注：詹姆斯·伯罗斯（James Burrows）是Exim小型企业办公室高级副总裁。他在金融服务行业的公共和私营部门拥有30多年的专业经验，包括商业银行，零售银行和投资银行业务。
有关更多信息，请访问exim.gov或电子邮件exporthelp@exim.gov。
2018年9月/10月
