Friday, July 25, 2008 State credit agency eyes Cebu furniture sector for loan facility
THE Philippine Export-Import Credit Agency (Philexim) announced that default cases on its wholesale lending program remain to be minimal.
“It’s a supervised credit program,” said Alex Ara-bis, Philexim officer-in-charge for accounts management department in the Visayas and Mindanao.
He said a fund or credit management committee evaluates and decides whether a company is qualified to avail itself of a loan.
Among the members of the committee are representatives from the Land Bank of the Philippines and Philexim.
Under Philexim’s Omnibus Revolving Credit Line, an established group of exporters can avail of a maximum of P25 million that will serve as a revolving fund that can be extended to a member-company. Each member can borrow a maximum of P1 million with a monthly interest of two percent, where one percent will go as revenue for the export association and the other one percent to Philexim.
This facility is also available for check re-discounting, international trade fair participation, improvement of workplace and other financial requirements of the exporters.
The Cebu Gifts, Toys and Houseware Manufacturers and Exporters Association (GTH-Cebu) and the Cebu-Fashion Accessories Manufacturers and Exporters (Fame) Foundation have availed themselves of the loan facility.
Arabis said a year after GTH-Cebu applied for the program, it has already generated more than P2 million for the group.
Once the associations can sustain the re-lending program, Philexim will detach itself from the group.
Edward Mendez of the Cebu Software Development Industry Association (Cebusoft) said he will talk to Cebusoft members so they can also benefit from the program.
He said the loan facility would be useful to members that have plans to establish outsourcing companies.
Philexim is also considering the Cebu Furniture Industries Foundation (CFIF) as some of its members have availed themselves of the state agency’s direct loan facility.
Aside from the wholesale lending and the direct loan programs, Philexim also offers guarantees and foreign-sourced financing facilities to industries where foreign exchange may be generated or saved, like the export group.
The government has also identified priority sectors that can avail themselves of Philexim’s different programs, including tourism, information and communications technology, agri-modernization and infrastructure projects. (DME)
