Trade & Supply Chain

TIME FOR CHANGE   By Antonio Guerrero   Nigeria holds great promise with its massive oil reserves, but endemic corruption, unfettered militant attacks on pipelines and lack of regulatory clarity could halt progress in its tracks.   When the Nigerian ...

By Anita Hawser   NORTH AMERICA Citi Citi is the leading provider of export-credit-agency–backed transactions, and in 2011 in conjunction with the US Export-Import Bank it launched its second ECA–guaranteed supply chain financing with participation of up to $1 billion ...

CHINESE EXPORTS DEFY EXPECTATIONS   By Thomas Clouse   China has given its banks more freedom to determine their own interest rates by declaring in June that banks could offer lenders rates as low as 80% of the official rate ...

BUILDING BLOCKS   By Anita Hawser and Paula Green   The winners of this year's awards come from a wide array of bank and nonbank backgrounds.   They offer unique financing solutions and are helping buyers and suppliers connect as ...

LEADING THE PACK   By Kathryn Tully   Global Finance evaluates the Best of the Best Supply Chain Finance Providers in The Winners' Circle: an ongoing look at the top awards winners over the magazine's 25-year history, launched as part ...

OMAN: CRAFTING A NEW FUTURE   By Gordon Platt   Keenly aware that its vital oil resources are dwindling, Oman has embarked on a major economic diversification program.   Oman's economy has grown steadily in recent years, helped by rising ...

NEWSMAKERS: RUSSIA   By Kim Iskyan   Mikhail Fridman has overcome a lot of hurdles since his humble beginnings as a window-cleaning entrepreneur in Russia, just as the Soviet Union was unraveling.   Fridman faces his most difficult maneuver yet ...

THE NEW OIL RUSH   By Michael Shari   As the US inches closer to its elusive goal of energy independence, the economic ripple effect promises to leave no region or industry of the world untouched.   Few would argue ...

SABMILLER MAKES MORE AFFORDABLE LOCAL BEER   By Antonio Guerrero   The UK’s SABMiller, the world’s second-largest brewer, plans to invest up to $2.5 billion in Africa over the next five years to build new breweries and revamp existing ones to ...

SEARCHING FOR THE SILVER LINING   By Al Modugno   The European sovereign debt crisis is causing rates to rise for trade credit insurance, and demand is increasing—particularly in emerging markets.   Since the global financial crisis of 2007–2008,demand for ...

By Gordon Platt   BEST TRADE FINANCE BANKS 2012: REGIONAL WINNERS   AMERICAS Citi Citi's trade finance business set records across the board in 2011, as all of the pieces seemed to fall in place for the bank. "We were ...

ANNUAL SURVEY AND AWARDS: LIQUIDITY AND REGULATIONS SQUEEZE TRADE FINANCE   By Gordon Platt   The global economy is threatened by a shortage of financing for international trade, as banks reassess their business models.   The availability and cost of ...

COMMODITIES TEST THE BORDERS OF INTERNATIONAL FINANCE   By Michael Shari   Commodity producers are turning to specialized banks that are willing to take multiple layers of risk in private deals.   Great ideas are born at times like these. ...

Global Finance names the World’s Best Trade Finance Banks 2012 NEW YORK, December 16, 2011 – Global Finance magazine ( GFmag.com ) has named the “Best Trade Finance Banks” by region and country in an exclusive survey to be published ...

    PREPARING FOR THE WORST   By Antonio Guerrero Latin American countries are starting to build reserves and diversify economies to brace for a possible global downturn. The question is whether it will be enough to protect the export-driven ...

TRADE FRICTION WITH THE US GROWS   By Thomas Clouse   China and the United States are facing further trade friction after the US Senate passed a bill imposing tariffs on Chinese imports.   P epsiCo challenges Coca-Cola’s dominance Photo ...

By Thomas Clouse COMPANIES AUTOMOBILES Chery International After years of torrid growth, China’s automobile market slowed significantly this year, with light vehicle sales up only 5% year-on-year in the first eight months, according to figures from J.D. Power. Chery International, ...

COLLABORATION GROWS   Moderated by Anita Hawser   Companies and their banks are working together to develop finance solutions encompassing the entire supply chain.   Anita Hawser: How are current market conditions impacting the development of Supply Chain Finance (SCF)? ...

GO WITH GOLD   By Michael Shari   Runaway gold prices are empowering mining companies to finance themselves—and forcing banks to innovate, providing opportunities for investors that are willing to take on more complex risk.   Kinross Gold has sworn off ...

IN WITH THE OLD   By Paula L. Green   Thanks to new technology that improves information flow, traditional trade finance tools such as forfaiting are now being used more frequently as part of a broader supply chain finance program.   ...