Boeing stresses importance of Ex-Im Bank in Senate

A Boeing official stressed Thursday at a Senate hearing the importance of Export-Import Bank financing to sell planes overseas, even as House leaders threaten to abolish the bank.

Marc Allen, president of Boeing Capital Corp., told the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation panel's subcommittee on aviation that 80% of the company's commercial planes are sold overseas. The company has 168,000 workers and 1.5 million jobs at suppliers.

But the Export-Import Bank, which guarantees financing for foreign airlines and countries that couldn't otherwise buy Boeing planes, is under attack by House leaders who contend that manufacturers could find other ways to sell their products.

"If Ex-Im goes away, it is predictable Europe and Airbus will use export credit pricing to provide aerospace industries there an advantage over ours," Allen said.

China and Russia are developing competitor planes to Boeing's popular 737, and Brazil and Japan are building regional jets, he said. "China, Russia and other emerging players will follow," Allen said. "It isn't so much companies that compete as countries."

Congress is debating the future of the Export-Import Bank because its authorization expires in September.

The bank had $48 billion in exposure for wide-body and narrow-body jets, representing 42% of its total exposure, as of March 31, according to a report by the Government Accountability Office.

The bank supported deliveries of 789 Boeing aircraft from 2008 through 2013, according to the GAO. For comparison, European counterparts supported deliveries of 821 Airbus planes.

House Republicans have been blasting the bank as unnecessary. House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., said earlier this month that he would let the bank expire because private banks could handle the business.

Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, the GOP vice presidential nominee in 2012, called the bank "crony capitalism" on Wednesday and said Boeing could do well without it.

But Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said Thursday he'd like to vote on bank legislation in September.

Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., who led the hearing, said the bank needs to be reauthorized.

"These jobs are threatened if we fail to remain competitive," Cantwell said. "We need to do everything we can to make sure that American manufacturing remains competitive."

Sen. Kelly Ayotte, R-N.H., worried that bank financing benefits large companies rather than small companies in her state, with 10 companies receiving 75% of the financing.

But Allen said Boeing's suppliers, such as several in New Hampshire, benefit from the sale of entire planes.