Organisms to support exports

ATRIUM

One issue that companies often have insufficient information about is the support they can count on for their internationalization activities

The objective off this article is to explain

What are the main types of support that companies can find for their international activity

Make a presentation of the key public bodies that exist in Spain

We are going to focus on the
agencies of the Central Administration
We are not going to deal therefore
with the organisms at the autonomic or
municipal. Nor we are going to deal
with private entities or semi-public
entities such as the Chambers of Comerce

Many of the countries often have,
at the central government level,
promotion agencies in the
internacional economical markets:

ICEX (Spain)

ICE (Italy)

Prochile (Chile)

The support policies can be very relevant
in other aspects of the international activity
of companies , such as financing
(both exports and investments), or the assurance of operations against various risks (payment, politicians, etc.)

On the other hand, it is also common that at the level of regional and local governments
there are international promotion agencies

It should also mention the role of business organizations, such as Chamber of Commerce, business associations, etc

Main types of support

Financing

This is one of the aspects in which public support is more outstanding.

In the case of Spain, a wide range of instruments is offered of financial support, from credits with government funds (such as the Fund for the Internationalization of the Company-FIEM), credits and capital for investments abroad (through the semi-public company Cofides or the Official Credit Institute), export credit insurance (through the semi-public company CESCE), etc

Information

Practically all the entities that provide support usually offer information: information
about the economy and the conditions for the countries' businesses; studies of market on sectors; information on foreign trade techniques, means of payment, transportation, etc.

Identification of potencial partners

This is another of the key barriers to
that companies face when they approach a foreign market.

The Public administrations of many countries, usually through their embassies, offer services to identify partners.

These services can be of different scope (from the mere sending of a list of importers or agents, until more thorough prospecting, contacting these importers and agents directly to present to the company, explore their interest in the products of this, etc.).

Vocational training

The lack of personnel prepared for international work is the main barriers that companies face. The realization of training activities is a key activity in supporting companies:
through courses (face-to-face and online), seminars, workshops, etc.

Key organizations in Spain

In this section we will explain, as we have indicated, which are the organisms
key public authorities in the Spanish central administration in terms of support for internationalization of the company

We have identified seven key agencies

Secretary of State for Commerce

The most central agency is undoubtedly the Secretary of State for Trade,
integrated in the Ministry of Economy, Industry and Competitiveness

The Secretary of State for Trade does have a direct relationship with companies
regarding the management of the FIEM (Fund for the Internationalization of the Company)
The FIEM is the heir of the former Development Aid Fund. The FIEM grants
financial support in the form of credits

This, in order to expedite the processing of operations, in 2017 it was approved a line for small and medium projects (up to three million dollars)

The network of Commercial Offices abroad

The Commercial Offices have specialized personnel in foreign trade issues
For the company it can be a source of help for key aspects of its activity.

For example, as a source of information: about the product market of the company, the regulations and technical requirements that this may have, companies, competitors from other countries, tariffs, etc.

The Commercial Offices can also serve to identify potential importers or partners.

Commercial Offices can provide logistic support to the company, helping you in matters that for a Spanish company can be very complicated from Spain, how to get an interpreter, know which is the most recommended, or organize meeting agendas for the Spanish company

CESCE

CESCE is a public-private company, that is, whose capital shares the State
with private companies, mainly banks

Its function is in principle very simple: to ensure the collection of operations with the
exterior.

In certain operations, CESCE acts on behalf of the State: it is normally of operations of a certain size, in countries that may present risks especially high political type

CESCE can offer other complementary services useful for companies.
One of them is information about foreign companies.

CESCE also offers a insurance for investments abroad, covering various risks (expropriations, wars, problems for the repatriation of benefits, etc.

COFIDES

The function of COFIDES it is very clear: to support with investment the investment abroad of the companies

COFIDES is also a company that combines public shareholders and private

It may be convenient for many reasons (being close to consumers, avoiding
tariff or other barriers that limit exports, ensure the supply of inputs, manufacture with more competitive costs).

All these elements favor the competitiveness of the Spanish company, its long-term growth, its profitability, the creation of additional jobs in Spain.

COFIDES offers in this sense a fundamentally financial support.

On the one hand, can take shares in the capital of the company that a Spanish company established abroad. In these cases, the vocation of COFIDES is to have
minority shareholdings

Its fundamental objective is to support the internationalization of Spanish companies.

On the other hand, it can offer loans, both to the Spanish company in Spain and to the company that it has established abroad, depending on what it is that estimate more appropriate

Official Credit Institute (ICO)

The Official Credit Institute (better known by its acronym ICO) is a public bank
attached to the Ministry of Economy, Industry and Competitiveness

The ICO provides funds to banks, ensures the interest of export credits that these grant, acts as financial agent of the Spanish government, etc., but the normal thing is that a company has no direct relationship with the institution

The ICO manages, for example, on behalf of the State, the so-called Reciprocal Interest Adjustment (CARI).

It is a kind of "insurance type of interest, whose objective is to favor Spanish exports by encouraging granting of credits (with a repayment term of more than two years) at the fixed interest by financial entities ".

The ICO also offers financial support lines for Spanish companies that they invest abroad.

A third important activity of the ICO is that it acts as the financial agent of the Spanish government for FIEM credits

The Territorial Network of Commerce

Together with the so-called Foreign Network, the one formed by the Commercial Offices in the
abroad, the Secretary of State for Commerce has what is called the Network
Territorial: a network of representations in provinces and autonomous communities by
all of Spain

These territorial delegations are offices of the Secretary of State for Trade and of ICEX throughout the national geography

The Commerce delegation is a point of contact for proximity, where companies can find guidance and a way to get in touch with the central agencies located in Madrid or with the Commercial Offices in the Foreign.

ICEX

The ICEX develops a wide range of activities aimed at supporting companies
The ICEX as such doesnt' have offices abroad. This "offices" are the Commercial Offices

The ICEX website collects all the information produced by the Commercial Offices: Studies, notes, directories, etc.

The ICEX is the one that arranges in Spain with a company conducting a study to identify potential partners in a market determined. But the one who performs the study is the Commercial Office.

The ICEX organizes information dissemination activities in Spain: seminars on foreign markets, foreign trade techniques, business opportunities that are derive from the activity of multilateral organizations, in short, over all types of issues that are relevant to the international activity of companies

The ICEX is the main organization that develops promotional activities commercial, which can be very varied: trade missions, fairs, seminars,
business meetings, investment forums ...

It also has a business school, ICEX-CECO, in which masters and long courses are taught duration, usually on issues related to the internationalization of the economy

Finally, one of the star programs of ICEX, and that enjoys greater recognition, is the scholarship program, through which young people are trained
graduates, in a long process of formation that includes studies in the school of business of ICEX-CECO in Madrid, an internship in an Office Commercial, and a period of internship in a company.

Thanks to the program ICEX trainees have trained many hundreds of professin¡onals traders