Global Access for Small Business Forum in San Leandro, Calif., Friday, May 20, 2011

Ex-Im Bank Board Member Diane Farrell and DOC Deputy Assistant Secretary for Domestic Operations Ro Khanna To Speak

WASHINGTON, May 18, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- In San Leandro, on May 20, 2011, the Export-Import Bank of the United States (Ex-Im Bank) is sponsoring Global Access for Small Business, a forum to help small businesses in the Bay Area learn how Ex-Im Bank, the Department of Commerce (DOC) and other federal agencies can help them grow through exporting.  The event is hosted by the City of San Leandro.

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WHAT: Global Access for Small Business Forum

WHERE: LEED Gold Community Center
13909 East 14th Street
San Leandro, CA 94578

WHEN: Friday, May 20, 2011
8:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

MEDIA: Agency speakers are available for interviews. Contact: (Ex-Im Bank) Linda Formella, 202-565-3204; (DOC) Lorri Crowley, 202-482-3809

San Leandro Mayor Stephen Cassidy will offer welcoming remarks, followed by presentations by DOC Deputy Assistant Secretary for Domestic Operations Ro Khanna, who oversees the DOC's 109 Export Assistance Centers, and Ex-Im Bank Board Member Diane Farrell. They will discuss federal programs available to small businesses for overseas marketing and export financing.

Panel discussions will feature exporting success stories by representatives of local small-businesses, including Energy Recovery Inc., a San Leandro-based manufacturer and exporter of energy-recycling devices. Regional officials from federal agencies, including Ex-Im Bank, the DOC and the Small Business Administration will participate. Networking sessions with agency officials and local export development leaders will conclude the event.

Global Access for Small Business is Ex-Im Bank's initiative to help more than 5,000 small companies across the United States grow and increase jobs through exporting. It is an integral part of President Obama's National Export Initiative (NEI) mission being led by the Commerce Department to double U.S. exports by 2015.

Global Access includes a wide variety of business, financial and government partners, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the National Association of Manufacturers.

Ex-Im Bank, an independent, self-sustaining federal-government agency, helps create and maintain U.S. jobs by filling gaps in export financing and strengthening U.S. export competitiveness. The Bank provides a variety of financing mechanisms, including working capital guarantees to help small and medium-sized U.S. businesses, export-credit insurance to protect against nonpayment by foreign buyers, and loan guarantees and direct loans to assist foreign buyers of U.S. goods and services.

During the first half of fiscal year 2011, Ex-Im Bank approved $13.4 billion in total financing authorizations, supporting $15.9 billion in U.S. export sales. These sales will support more than 115,000 American jobs in communities across the country. This six-month authorization figure is the highest in the Bank's history.

In fiscal year 2010, Ex-Im Bank authorized a record high of approximately $24.5 billion in loans, guarantees and insurance (including more than $5 billion in authorizations for small businesses), supporting an estimated 230,000 American jobs across the country.

For more information, see Ex-Im Bank's Web site at www.exim.gov.

SOURCE Export-Import Bank of the United States