No different are exporters, who preach free trade abroad and expansive subsidies at home. It's also the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and National Association of Manufacturers - groups that regularly sing the praises of the free market. Ex-Im has aided and abetted today's international economic woes by encouraging wasteful, unsustainable borrowing. Nor is Ex-Im an important generator of exports and jobs. Most of the subsidized deals would have gone forward anyway.
Buyers make decisions on far more than credit terms.
One study ranked that factor only eighth of 12. In most cases, Ex-Im is simply giving away taxpayer dollars to foreign buyers. But don't think that Ex-Im credit is free. The bank generates funds only by taking money from other businesses. That means an American corner drugstore is being denied loans in favor of a Chinese government enterprise, such as Beijing's State Development Bank.