Export Credit Line for Sberbank of Russia
Expanding Overseas Markets through Support for Japanese Exports

• Region: Europe
• Machinery and Equipment
• Export Loans

1. The Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC; President & CEO: Hiroshi Watanabe)^*1 signed an agreement on June 29 for extending an export credit line^*2 totaling up to 8 billion Japanese yen with the Sberbank of Russia (Sberbank), the largest commercial bank in Russia.  The credit line is cofinanced with Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, Mizuho Corporate Bank, Ltd., and the Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Ltd. 
    
2. This credit line, offered to Sberbank, will provide medium- and long-term funds in yen or U.S. dollars to finance the import by Russian firms of machineries, equipments and services, including construction machineries, from Japanese exporters. 
    
3. Affected by the global financial crisis, the Russian economy registered a sharp fall in 2009.  Since 2010, however, its economy has been back on a steady recovery path supported by capital investment and personal spending (Real GDP growth in 2010: 4.0%).  Under these circumstances, Japanese firms view Russia as a promising destination for business development^*3 and this export credit line is expected to boost exports from Japan, thereby serving to strengthen bilateral economic ties between Japan and Russia. 
    
4. Following the first export credit line to Sberbank provided in 2004, this is the second credit line that JBIC provides to Sberbank.  In collaboration with Sberbank, a financial institution that is supporting business activities including the trade transactions of Russian firms, JBIC intends to support greater business opportunities for Japanese firms in this country. In particular, by supporting exports of machineries related to the natural resource sector, JBIC is pursuing the expansion of overseas markets and strengthening the international competitiveness of Japanese firms.
    

Note

1. *1 JBIC is the international wing of the Japan Finance Corporation (JFC; Governor: Shosaku Yasui). 
2. *2 An export credit line is a form of export credit in which JBIC makes a commitment of the maximum amount of credit to be extended to its client (foreign banks or other entities) to finance exports of machinery, equipment and services from Japan.
3. *3 In “the FY 2010 Survey Report on Overseas Business Operations by Japanese Manufacturing Companies”, an annual survey conducted by JBIC, Russia was ranked the 5th among the promising countries for overseas business over the long-term (in the next decade).