EXIM Chair Lewis, Director Herrnstadt Visit U.S. Steel in Pittsburgh, Meet Steelworkers President Conway, Host Gamechanger Exporter Roundtable with Congresswoman Summer Lee (EXIM Bank)

PITTSBURGH – Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) President and Chair Reta Jo Lewis and Owen Herrnstadt, a member of EXIM’s Board of Directors, traveled to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Monday to meet with exporters, local business owners and government leaders to discuss the agency’s ongoing efforts to generate new opportunities for U.S. exporters and support more American jobs.  

Chair Lewis and Director Herrnstadt kicked off their visit to Pittsburgh with a visit to one of the United States Steel Corporation’s (U.S. Steel) local manufacturing sites, the Irvin Plant, to see steel coil finishing and highlight the EXIM Board of Director’s recent vote to approve the renewal of a $200 million purchase facility under EXIM’s Supply Chain Finance Guarantee Program. The transaction will support approximately 700 jobs in states across the country, including Pennsylvania, Kentucky, West Virginia, New Jersey, Illinois, Alabama, Missouri, Indiana, and Texas.

Chair Lewis and Director Herrnstadt then met with United Steelworkers (USW) International President Tom Conway, where they discussed EXIM’s Make More in America Initiative, which supports export-oriented U.S. domestic manufacturing projects, and the agency’s role in supporting U.S. exporters and the jobs they create. 

Later in the afternoon, Chair Lewis and Director Herrnstadt joined Congresswoman Summer Lee (PA-12) to host a Gamechanger Exporter Roundtable event, part of a nationwide initiative to gather local business leaders and exporters to highlight the role EXIM can play in helping U.S. businesses compete and win overseas. The event was co-hosted by the University of Pittsburgh and the Pennsylvania Small Business Development Center, named in 2022 as EXIM’s Regional Export Promotion Partner (REPP) of the Year. Roundtable participants included federal and state government agencies, small business leaders and community organizations from across Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania.  

“American innovation and industry were on full display during our time to Pittsburgh,” said Chair Lewis. “EXIM’s resources for small businesses in the supply chain of U.S. Steel help the company remain a powerhouse exporter and support good jobs in western Pennsylvania and throughout the United States, and I was pleased to also meet with the United Steelworkers to help make the connection between jobs and our Make More in America Initiative. I was also thrilled to partner with Congresswoman Summer Lee to engage so many of her Western Pennsylvania small businesses and constituencies in helping them learn more about what EXIM can do to help them boost exports and better compete in the global marketplace.”

ABOUT EXIM: 

The Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) is the nation’s official export credit agency with the mission of supporting American jobs by facilitating U.S. exports. To advance American competitiveness and assist U.S. businesses as they compete for global sales, EXIM offers financing including export credit insurance, working capital guarantees, loan guarantees, and direct loans. As an independent federal agency, EXIM contributes to U.S. economic growth by supporting tens of thousands of jobs in exporting businesses and their supply chains across the United States. Since 1992, EXIM has generated more than $9 billion for the U.S. Treasury for repayment of U.S. debt. Learn more at www.exim.gov. 

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