149 



Mr. Penny. To any great extent. You said you did utilize them 

 in Mexico. 



Mr, Webster. This is not the key. 



Mr. Penny. You have largely been handling the financing on 

 your own and, to date, your assistance from FAS has been either 

 the kind of market analysis assistance or the market promotion 

 program. 



Mr. Webster. That is correct. The MPP has been the big item 

 and the FAS side of it has been the most helpful to it. 



Mr. Penny. Ms. Colon, you indicated that I think 40 percent of 

 U.S. GSM credits were — ^have shared — were originated through 

 CoBank? 



Ms. Colon. Yes. 



Mr. Penny. Are there any other major American financial insti- 

 tutions involved with GSM programs? 



Ms. Colon. There are other U.S. banks involved, but not to the 

 extent that CoBank is. 



[Additional information submitted by Ms. Colon follows:] 



Not on a consistent basis and not to any meaningful extent. We estimate CoBank 

 and the next four most active banking participants in the GSM programs account 

 for more than 85 percent of the total GSM business. CoBank is the only U.S. bank 

 in the top five most active lenders with the GSM programs. 



Mr. Penny. I mean you are 40 percent. Are there any that would 

 even approach 5 percent? 



Ms. Colon. Not that I am aware of 



Mr. Penny. The international financiers, are there three or four 

 that are predominant in this area? 



Ms. Colon. There is one in particular. 



Mr. Penny. That is. 



Ms. Colon. From the Netherlands, Rabobank. 



Mr. Penny. You mentioned in your testimony that the foreign 

 financiers don't have the same commitment to the U.S. ag economy 

 that a domestic financial institution might have. What do you be- 

 lieve the advantages are — can you document that there are finan- 

 cial advantages to American farmers, producers, given CoBank's in- 

 volvement as opposed to the involvement of some foreign financial 

 institution? 



Ms. Colon. I don't have specific examples but believe, as a U.S. 

 bank, we understand better what our farmers want and we pro- 

 mote the export of their products under the U.S. Government pro- 

 grams. 



[Additional information submitted by Ms. Colon follows:] 



Foreign banks can't be expected to promote the sale of U.S. agriculttiral products. 

 They're in the business of financing trade transactions to generate a profit, and the 

 origin of the product is immaterial. Also, foreign banks often respond to iJie policy 

 direction of their governments. For example, prior to the end of the cold war French 

 banks had been heavily involved in financing U.S. agricultural exports to the Soviet 

 Union. When the French Government developed its own credit programs to assist 

 the FSU, French banks largely withdrew from financing U.S. exports to the FSU. 



Ms. Colon. It was the GSM program, I believe, that helped get 

 Algeria to purchase wood products from the United States which 

 was good for the wood industry. 



Mr. Webster. That is correct. Algeria and Egypt, both, that is 

 correct. 



Mr. Penny. In the wood industry. 



