United States exports were higher than ever in 2012 for the fourth consecutive year, according to an annual report from the Export-Import (Ex-Im) Bank of the United States.
Nearly $50 billion of “Made in the USA” items were exported in the 2012 fiscal year, supporting roughly 255,000 American jobs, according to the report.
The mission of the Ex-Im Bank is to help create and maintain jobs in the U.S. by providing services such as working capital guarantees, export-credit insurance and financing to help foreign buyers purchase goods and services.
“The ‘Made in the USA’ brand has never been stronger, fueled by the strength of American exporters and the work President Obama has done to grow our economy,” said Fred P. Hochberg, Ex-Im president, in a press release. “In the past five years, U.S. exporters working with Ex-Im Bank have created or sustained over one-million private sector jobs. And we”™ve done it all at no cost to the American taxpayer, as Ex-Im has sent $1.6 billion to the U.S. Treasury over the past five years.”
Ex-Im financing increased 10 percent this year compared to 2011 and has more than doubled since 2008. Additionally, the volume of export financing to small businesses has increased 92 percent since 2008, from $3.2 billion to $6.1 billion.
“By these measures and others, the past five years have seen nothing less than a revolution in export-driven economic development,” Hochberg said.
