U.S. House votes to renew Ex-Im Bank, boost credit cap

The House of Representatives on Wednesday voted to renew the U.S. Export-Import Bank's charter until September 2014 and gradually raise its lending cap to $140 billion, disappointing conservative groups ...

The Senate is nearing a final vote on legislation to reauthorize the Export-Import Bank for three years and raise its lending cap from the current $100 billion to $140 billion.

President Barack Obama has signed legislation that renews the charter of the Export-Import Bank for three years and increases the bank’s lending cap to $140 billion from the current $100 billion. The bank is the government’s vehicle for promoting U.S. export sales.

The House has voted to extend the life of the Export-Import Bank, a key source of financing for American companies, ranging from small businesses to giants such as Boeing, trying to sell goods overseas.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Taxpayer-backed financing would "grind to a halt" and many companies would find themselves at a competitive disadvantage if Congress does not renew the Export-Import Bank charter by the end of May, the bank's president said. In remarks prepared for delivery at the bank's annual meeting on Thursday, Fred Hochberg said an effort by some lawmakers to "gut" the organization would disarm businesses "just as foreign competition is heating up." Hochberg said export credit agencies around the world are "working to expand their footprint" and increase their financing. ...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Taxpayer-backed financing would "grind to a halt" and many companies would find themselves at a competitive disadvantage if Congress does not renew the Export-Import Bank charter by the end of May, the bank's president said.