The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), USCIB’s affiliate, recently presented key trade finance messages, along with a host of regulatory concerns, to Olli Rehn, the European Union commissioner responsible for economic and monetary affairs, in Brussels.
The ICC Europe Region Consultative Group met March 28-29 in the Belgian capital, where they met with a number of EU representatives to address issues of importance to international trade. Martin Granholm, ICC regional coordinator for the Europe Region, underlined trade financing challenges in his meeting with Mr. Rehn.
While global trade flows rebounded across many regions in 2010, high pricing has meant that traders in many low-income countries still face difficulties accessing affordable financing. These were the findings of the ICC Trade and Finance Global Survey 2011, which polled representatives from 210 banks in 94 countries.
The European Commission is a key player in new global regulatory initiatives for the banking sector. Mr. Granholm, who is also an ICC Executive Board member, emphasized during his meeting that companies all over the world are concerned about the impact of such regulations, including the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision document known as Basel III, on the financing of international trade.
Click here to read more on ICC’s website.
Staff contact: Eva Hampl
