[Enclosure]
Press Release Issued by the Export-Import
Bank, October 23, 1947
The Board of Directors of the Export-Import Bank today approved
credits in the amount of $36,500,000 to Italian industries
through Istituto Mobiliare Italiano, thus bringing to
$97,300,000 the aggregate of credits approved under an earmark
of $100 million made in January for the purpose of reactivating
Italian industry and foreign trade.
The credits granted today are in two groups, as follows:
- 1.
- Credits in favor of Istituto Mobiliare Italiano for
the account of the leading Italian iron and steel mills
in the following amounts:
-
a)
- $7.5 million for the account of Ilva, Alti
Fornie Acciaierie d’Italia, Societa per
Azioni;
-
b)
- $3.0 million for the account of “Terni”,
Societa per L’lndustriae L’Elettricita;
-
c)
- $1.0 million for the account of Dalmine,
Societa per Azioni;
-
d)
- $1.0 million for the account of Societa
Italiana Acciaierie Cornigliano;
-
e)
- $2.0 million for the account of Acciaieriee
Ferriere Lombarde Falck, Societa per
Azioni.
- 2.
- Credits in favor of Istituto Mobiliare Italiano,
aggregating $22 million, for the account of small
industrial concerns within the four industrial sectors
eligible for financing:
-
a)
- $4 million for small chemical concerns;
-
b)
- $2 million for small rubber concerns;
-
c)
- $6 million for small electro-mechanical
concerns;
-
d)
- $10 million for small metallurgical and
mechanical concerns.
- Credits approved earlier under the January 1947
earmark include:
-
a)
- $23 million for the account of the Fiat
automobile and machine works, Montecatini chemical
and mining industries, and Pirelli rubber and
cable manufacturers—August 4, 1947;1
-
b)
- $5.8 million for four leading Italian
shipyards—October 1, 1947;
-
c)
- $32 million for 60 medium-sized metallurgical,
electrical, chemical and rubber firms—October 16,
1947.
The steel mill credits approved today are designed to enable the
Italian steel mills to purchase solid and liquid fuels and
certain amounts of equipment in the United States with a view to
sustaining and increasing their production of steel to meet
urgent internal Italian requirements and to supply materials to
other Italian concerns engaged in manufacturing for foreign
markets. Italy had built before the war an iron and steel
industry which took care of a large part of its needs. Capacity
was reduced by war damage and removals, but there has been a
notable recovery. The five steel mills benefiting from today’s
credits should be able to produce an aggregate of well over
1,000,000 tons of steel in the coming year.
The credits for the small industrial concerns supplement the $32
million previously approved by the Board for the account of 60
medium-sized industrial concerns.
In Italy, as in several other European countries, medium and
small-sized industrial concerns play a very large role in the
economy of the country as well as in its foreign trade. They
range in size from a labor force of as few as 10 workers to 250
workers. Before the war, and especially under the Fascist
regime, there was an increasing tendency toward monopoly, with
the small industrialists either being absorbed or squeezed out
of business. With the liberation of Italy the small
industrialist is making successful efforts at a comeback. The
credits approved by the Board today are designed to furnish the
small industrialist
[Page 999]
of
Italy with essential raw materials and equipment to enable him
to resume the place he formerly occupied in the Italian economy
and in foreign trade.
Following the decision to earmark $100 million the Bank,2 at the request of
the Italian Government, early in May sent two representatives to
Italy for exploratory discussions and to survey industrial
conditions.3 In July the Board of Directors reviewed
the findings of its representatives and informed the Italian
Ambassador of its readiness to receive and consider separate
credit applications. The Bank started receiving applications in
July.
The credits granted have been of varying maturities and
conditions in accordance with the merits of each application,
the ability of the applicant to earn foreign exchange readily
convertible into dollars, and the general economic welfare of
Italy. Though the credits are for specific purposes and for
given industrial concerns, the lines of credit, for the sake of
convenience and expediency, have been established in favor of
the Istituto Mobiliare Italiano. This is an Italian public
credit institution engaged in medium-term industrial financing,
which will act both as banker and as trustee. The credits
granted by the Bank to named industries will permit these
industries to establish definite production and export programs
free from uncertainties which have had a general restraining
effect on Italian recovery.
