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FARGO – U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND), a Senate Banking Committee member, hosted President and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) Kimberly Reed in North Dakota today for a Trade Finance Town Hall and a tour of WCCO Belting.

“The EXIM Bank is an important financing tool in the tool box to help small exporters stay competitive in the global marketplace,” said Senator Cramer. “I am glad Chairman Reed accepted my invitation to come to North Dakota so she can see firsthand the impact the EXIM Bank has on our economy and speak with our businesses and lenders about new opportunities to grow.”

“I want to thank Senator Cramer—who was critical to EXIM’s historic 2019 reauthorization—for inviting me to North Dakota to share how EXIM can help businesses thrive in the international marketplace,” said Chairman Reed. “It was an honor to come together with Senator Cramer, Senator Hoeven, Commissioner Goehring, and a variety of small business, supply chain, finance institution, and other stakeholders for a very important discussion on how EXIM can support North Dakota jobs by facilitating great North Dakota exports to the global marketplace.”

Chairman Reed’s visit follows Senator Cramer last year securing the longest reauthorization of the EXIM Bank in the bank’s history. North Dakota greatly benefits from the EXIM Bank, with the state’s total export value since 2014 reaching $38 million from machinery manufacturing sales, crop production sales, and plastic and rubber products.

The chairman’s trip began in Fargo with a Trade Finance Town Hall. Senator Cramer and Chairman Reed were joined as panelists by Senator John Hoeven, North Dakota Agriculture Commissioner Doug Goehring, International Trade Administration Director of Policy Kirt Gallatin, President and CEO of WCCO Belting Tom Shorma, and Energy & Environmental Research Center Vice President John Harju. They took questions from stakeholders who came to the roundtable, as well as those who joined virtually by Zoom.


Senator Cramer and Chairman Reed then traveled to Wahpeton where they toured WCCO Belting, a family-owned business which manufactures rubber conveyor belting products for agricultural and industrial equipment. WCCO utilizes the EXIM bank to sell its product in the global marketplace.