Mallee;
Did you see this?
"Major lawsuit demonstrates another reason to suspend AWB from USDA programs
Citing a $35 million court case that has been filed against a U.S. subsidiary of the Australian wheat monopoly, AWB (USA), in federal district court, U.S. Wheat Associates has renewed its call for the U.S. government to suspend AWB from participation in U.S. taxpayer-funded programs.
USW first called for the suspension last November, when evidence surfaced of AWB's illicit payments to the Saddam Hussein regime. Today the organization cited this new development as another reason for action.
The complicated case involves a series of transactions in 2003 and 2004, when AWB sold U.S. soybeans to six buyers in Indonesia using the USDA Supplier Credit Guarantee Program. The importers defaulted and because of an alleged web of AWB secret financial deals, Standard Chartered Bank (SCB) was only able to recover $42 million instead of the $64.7 million it should have received under the guarantees. SCB filed suit against AWB in February 2005. USDA regulations required AWB to pay USDA first if AWB received further funds, as is alleged.
"We're pleased whenever American commodities are exported, even by the Australians," said USW president Alan Tracy, "but we are deeply troubled whenever anyone misuses and abuses the U.S. programs."
AWB (USA) is a wholly owned U.S. subsidiary of Australia's government-sanctioned wheat export monopoly, which has exported U.S. commodities. Because of these AWB-related defaults, USDA has struck Indonesia from the SCGP program eligibility list, resulting in a serious loss of market access and potential export sales by U.S. industry in Indonesia, while AWB reportedly can access Australian programs to sell to Indonesia.
"In short, the U.S. taxpayers bailed out the AWB, despite questionable financial deals," Tracy explained. "AWB blew up U.S. export credit programs for Indonesia but maintained exclusive access to their own credit programs. Commercial buyers today in Indonesia want U.S. export credit financing to buy U.S. wheat, soybeans and corn but, because of the AWB program default, USDA is unwilling to consider any new credit facilities. No program translates into less U.S. exports and correspondingly lower U.S. prices."
"The allegations in this case are serious enough to warrant suspension of AWB (USA) from USDA programs," he charged. "Coupled with the evidence of illicit payments to Saddam Hussein under the Oil for Food sanction program, the confluence of evidence should spur debarment proceedings."
"And the U.S. government might want to think about trying to get its money back from AWB.""
http://www.uswheat.org/justReleased/doc/0AAEDDFDD03B5DFA85257148004165CB?OpenDocument#
Here is in part what DTN had to say:
"Lawsuit Follows CCC Bailout of AWB USA
04/07 14:30
-USDA Says AWB USA Withheld $34.9 Million; Exporter Remains Eligible for CCC Credits
By Jerry Hagstrom DTN Political Correspondent
WASHINGTON (DTN) -- The Agriculture Department paid $42.1 million in 2004 to satisfy U.S. government export credit guarantees on sales of U.S. soybeans by AWB USA Ltd., a subsidiary of the embattled Australian wheat export monopoly, to six Indonesian firms on which the firms defaulted. The Agriculture Department then declared Indonesia ineligible for credit guarantees, which U.S. Wheat Associates, the U.S. wheat marketing group and AWB critic, said Thursday has resulted in reduced access for U.S. firms to the Indonesian market.
The sales were made in 2003 and USDA made the payment of the $42.1 million to Standard Chartered Bank of New York, which financed the deals, in 2004. The payment surfaced in a $35 million lawsuit that Standard Chartered Bank filed on Feb. 10, 2005, in the U.S. Southern District Court of New York against AWB USA in an attempt to recover damages because the bank expected to be paid an additional $22.6 million...
According to the lawsuit, AWB USA made six sales of U.S. soybeans to three Indonesian firms in 2003 for a total of $99,607,870.17. The USDA through its Commodity Credit Corporation guaranteed 65 percent of the "port value" of the soybeans. In connection with each transaction, AWB and the Standard Chartered Bank entered into a note purchase and assignment agreement in which AWB agreed to assign the promissory note evidencing the importer's obligations and the associated [Commodity Credit Corporation] guarantee to the Standard Chartered Bank. In addition, AWB also arranged to have standby letters of credit issued in favor of Standard Chartered Bank in amounts equal to 35 percent of the value of the promissory notes in case Standard Chartered Bank did not receive full payment under the promissory notes. But when the importers defaulted and Standard Chartered Bank tried to collect from USDA, USDA refused full payment because USDA had discovered that the importers had made payments of $34.9 million to AWB's Geneva branch....."
What a tangled web!
Did you see this?
"Major lawsuit demonstrates another reason to suspend AWB from USDA programs
Citing a $35 million court case that has been filed against a U.S. subsidiary of the Australian wheat monopoly, AWB (USA), in federal district court, U.S. Wheat Associates has renewed its call for the U.S. government to suspend AWB from participation in U.S. taxpayer-funded programs.
USW first called for the suspension last November, when evidence surfaced of AWB's illicit payments to the Saddam Hussein regime. Today the organization cited this new development as another reason for action.
The complicated case involves a series of transactions in 2003 and 2004, when AWB sold U.S. soybeans to six buyers in Indonesia using the USDA Supplier Credit Guarantee Program. The importers defaulted and because of an alleged web of AWB secret financial deals, Standard Chartered Bank (SCB) was only able to recover $42 million instead of the $64.7 million it should have received under the guarantees. SCB filed suit against AWB in February 2005. USDA regulations required AWB to pay USDA first if AWB received further funds, as is alleged.
"We're pleased whenever American commodities are exported, even by the Australians," said USW president Alan Tracy, "but we are deeply troubled whenever anyone misuses and abuses the U.S. programs."
AWB (USA) is a wholly owned U.S. subsidiary of Australia's government-sanctioned wheat export monopoly, which has exported U.S. commodities. Because of these AWB-related defaults, USDA has struck Indonesia from the SCGP program eligibility list, resulting in a serious loss of market access and potential export sales by U.S. industry in Indonesia, while AWB reportedly can access Australian programs to sell to Indonesia.
"In short, the U.S. taxpayers bailed out the AWB, despite questionable financial deals," Tracy explained. "AWB blew up U.S. export credit programs for Indonesia but maintained exclusive access to their own credit programs. Commercial buyers today in Indonesia want U.S. export credit financing to buy U.S. wheat, soybeans and corn but, because of the AWB program default, USDA is unwilling to consider any new credit facilities. No program translates into less U.S. exports and correspondingly lower U.S. prices."
"The allegations in this case are serious enough to warrant suspension of AWB (USA) from USDA programs," he charged. "Coupled with the evidence of illicit payments to Saddam Hussein under the Oil for Food sanction program, the confluence of evidence should spur debarment proceedings."
"And the U.S. government might want to think about trying to get its money back from AWB.""
http://www.uswheat.org/justReleased/doc/0AAEDDFDD03B5DFA85257148004165CB?OpenDocument#
Here is in part what DTN had to say:
"Lawsuit Follows CCC Bailout of AWB USA
04/07 14:30
-USDA Says AWB USA Withheld $34.9 Million; Exporter Remains Eligible for CCC Credits
By Jerry Hagstrom DTN Political Correspondent
WASHINGTON (DTN) -- The Agriculture Department paid $42.1 million in 2004 to satisfy U.S. government export credit guarantees on sales of U.S. soybeans by AWB USA Ltd., a subsidiary of the embattled Australian wheat export monopoly, to six Indonesian firms on which the firms defaulted. The Agriculture Department then declared Indonesia ineligible for credit guarantees, which U.S. Wheat Associates, the U.S. wheat marketing group and AWB critic, said Thursday has resulted in reduced access for U.S. firms to the Indonesian market.
The sales were made in 2003 and USDA made the payment of the $42.1 million to Standard Chartered Bank of New York, which financed the deals, in 2004. The payment surfaced in a $35 million lawsuit that Standard Chartered Bank filed on Feb. 10, 2005, in the U.S. Southern District Court of New York against AWB USA in an attempt to recover damages because the bank expected to be paid an additional $22.6 million...
According to the lawsuit, AWB USA made six sales of U.S. soybeans to three Indonesian firms in 2003 for a total of $99,607,870.17. The USDA through its Commodity Credit Corporation guaranteed 65 percent of the "port value" of the soybeans. In connection with each transaction, AWB and the Standard Chartered Bank entered into a note purchase and assignment agreement in which AWB agreed to assign the promissory note evidencing the importer's obligations and the associated [Commodity Credit Corporation] guarantee to the Standard Chartered Bank. In addition, AWB also arranged to have standby letters of credit issued in favor of Standard Chartered Bank in amounts equal to 35 percent of the value of the promissory notes in case Standard Chartered Bank did not receive full payment under the promissory notes. But when the importers defaulted and Standard Chartered Bank tried to collect from USDA, USDA refused full payment because USDA had discovered that the importers had made payments of $34.9 million to AWB's Geneva branch....."
What a tangled web!
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