Outlays from Finame grew 59% in 2007
Valor Econômico - 01/11/2008
The Special Agency for Industrial Financing (Finame), subsidiary of the Brazilian Social and Economic Development Bank (BNDES), a financing company for capital goods to other companies, registered a record outlay of R$ 20.6 billion (US$ 9.5 billion) in 2007, with a 59.6% growth in comparison with 2006's R$ 12.9 billion (US$ 5.3 billion). "The result reflects the strong growth of the economy and the increase of the productive capacity of the industries", says Cláudio Bernardo Moraes, BNDES' superintendent of the area of indirect operations. For 2008, he believes the search for Finame's funds should remain strong. Ethanol and civil construction pushed Finame's operations in 2007. The transports segment, led by the sales of trucks - which reached R$ 8.2 billion (US$ 3.8 billion), almost twice 2006's R$ 4.5 billion (US$ 1.9 billion) - pushed the outlays of the program from the BNDES. There was also a boom in the demand for road machines for the construction of roadways that consumed almost R$ 2 billion (US$ 919 million) of the credit line. The Finame Agrícola program, for the recovery of agriculture, released R$ 2.1 billion (US$ 965 million), 40% above 2006. Another piece of news in the Finame was the extension in one more year of the Modermaq program, which ended at the end of December. Modermaq also has a great demand, for it finances machines and equipment for the processing industry and the industry of civil construction in addition to hospital equipment in special conditions of fixed interest of 12% a year. In 2007, the releases of this program went to R$ 2.7 billion (US$ 1.2 billion) or 42% above 2006's R$ 1.9 billion (US$ 781 million). The bank participates with 90% on the total value of the machine to be financed, with a payment term of 60 months. Likewise, Moderfrota will be maintained, with a special type of financing at fixed interest inside the Finame Agrícola. More than 85% of the borrowers of the Finame Agrícola use the Moderfrota, which was responsible for R$ 1.8 billion (US$ 827 million) of the R$ 2.1 billion (US$ 965 million) released for the Finame Agrícola in 2007.