Ecuador’s government will offer loans of up to US$2 million to exporters disadvantaged by the recent U.S. decision not to renew a free trade agreement with the country, according to the government’s official newspaper El Ciudadano.

National Finance Corporation (CFN) chairman Camilo Samán told the newspaper that the emergency line of credit will be provided to offset the effects of new tariffs for the export industry.

“Today we are launching a special line of expedited credit that will not need paperwork or credit analysis, and will be an emergency line to restore value for their exports they had to pay tariffs for,” he was quoted as saying.

“We want to show our exporters that there exists a government that is concerned for them and that there will always be support from public banking institutions, which do not stop the generation of foreign exchange that is so important to us.”

Loan applicants will not need to offer collateral or mortgages, but will need to show they have been exporting to a client in the U.S. for at least a year and that those exports are affected by the Andean Trade Promotion and Drug Eradication Act (ATPDEA) decision, the story reported.

Loans will be given with an annual interest rate of 7.5%.

Ecuadorian newspaper El Mercurio reported that the floral and agricultural industries would be most affected by the trade agreement change – particularly producers of mangoes, pineapples and broccoli.

Related story: Colombia and Ecuador hit by U.S. tariffs

Source: www.freshfruitportal.com