Staff Reporter
Want China Times
February 15, 2015
One of China’s top military electronics companies has secured a credit worth 35 billion yuan (US$5.6 billion) for international sales activities, reports UK-based Jane’s Defence Weekly.
The China Electronics Technology Group Corporation (CETC) will be granted the fund through a strategic cooperation agreement it signed with the Export-Import Bank of China earlier this month, according to China’s State Administration for Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense (SASTIND).
The funds would enable CETC to offer its customers access to export credit, preferential loans and other financial mechanisms, SASTIND said.
Several weeks ago, China Aerospace Science and Industry Corp (CASIC), another state-owned defense industry, obtained a credit worth 20 billion yuan (US$3.2 billion) from China Construction Bank.
The fund will support aerospace launching, application, and overseas businesses, said SASTIND.
The SASTIND announcement shows a close tie between China’s state-owned defense companies and banks. Most national defense companies have received similar credits that usually run into the billion dollar range from the banks over the last years.
The funds, as SASTIND has suggested, are used to support scientific research and development, mergers, exports and other related activities.
The funds have contributed to the substantial growth of China’s military exports. According to US-based consulting and information analysis firm IHS, China rose up to become the seventh largest military export country in 2013, selling mostly to developing countries that need financial support to make their military purchases, according to the report.
