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LONDON, Dec 7 (Reuters) - Britain's government said on
Monday it would offer a wider range of loan guarantees to
promote exports as part of a drive to boost overseas sales
following the country's departure from the European Union, its
biggest foreign market.
Lenders will receive a state guarantee for 80% of the money
they lend to companies to support exports, up to 25 million
pounds ($33 million) per business.
The guarantees will be available to support working capital
and other general costs, and will not be tied to specific export
contracts, which was usually the case under previous schemes
underwritten by export credit body UK Export Finance.
"The new General Export Facility will make a huge difference
for entrepreneurs who need the financial backing to go global
and benefit from our free trade agreements," junior trade
minister Graham Stuart said.
Firms that exported at least 5% of their production in each
of the past three years, or 20% in any single year, will be
eligible for the loan guarantees, which will initially be
available from HSBC, Lloyds Bank, NatWest
, Santander and Barclays.
UK Export Finance said it provided 4.4 billion pounds of
support for exports in the 2019/20 financial year.
Britain exported goods and services worth a total 691
billion pounds ($917 billion) last year, while imports totalled
721 billion pounds.
Almost half of goods exported last year went to the EU, and
these will face significant extra red tape in the form of
customs declarations from Jan. 1 when a post-Brexit transition
agreement ends.
British goods exports will also face new tariffs if
last-minute trade negotiations with the EU fail, and services
exports are already set to incur new restrictions.
The British government has said Brexit will allow it to
strike better trade agreements with non-EU countries than the
bloc had been able to strike on Britain's behalf.
The biggest deal agreed so far, with Japan, largely
replicates a previous deal reached by the EU.
($1 = 0.7539 pounds)
($1 = 0.7535 pounds)
(Reporting by David Milliken
Editing by Gareth Jones)
