- Region: Latin America and the Caribbean
- Manufacturing and Services
- Mid-tier Enterprises and Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises(SMEs)
- Overseas Investment Loans
June 18, 2014
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The Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC; Governor: Hiroshi Watanabe) signed today a loan agreement totaling up to USD5.3 million (JBIC portion) with HIGUCHI MANUFACTURING MEXICO, S. DE R. L. DE C.V. (HMX), a Mexican subsidiary of Higuchi Manufacturing Co., Ltd. (Higuchi; Headquarters: Gifu Prefecture; Director and President: Nariie Higuchi). The loan is cofinanced with The SHIGA BANK, Ltd. and other financial institutions.
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The loan is to finance through HIGUCHI MANUFACTURING AMERICA, LLC, a US subsidiary of Higuchi, the establishment of HMX, which will manufacture automobile safety equipment in the State of Coahuila, Mexico. The financing will specifically support HMX's building of a new plant.
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Higuchi, which started business in 1937, is a small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) specializing in the manufacturing of precision metal forming products and holds advanced technology in producing parts related to automobile safety equipment (including air bags, seat belts, etc.). In step with overseas expansion of major Japanese automakers and their related industries, Higuchi has been increasing overseas business activities, expanding its operations in USA in 2006 and in China in 2011. By establishing HMX, the company intends to capture a greater market share in the Americas where continued growth is foreseen for the air bag market. The loan will support such overseas business deployment of Higuchi and thereby contribute to maintaining and strengthening the international competitiveness of Japanese industries.
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As Japan's policy-based financial institution, JBIC will continue to support overseas business deployment of Japanese companies, including mid-tier enterprises and SMEs, in the markets of the Americas where economic growth is expected in the future, by drawing on its various financial facilities and schemes for structuring projects, and performing its risk-assuming function.