Minister for Enterprise Batt O’Keeffe has today urged Irish banks to increase the level of lending to export-led firms.
Mr O'Keeffe, who is taking part in a Government trade mission to the Middle East, said that without the support of Irish banks emerging markets such as the Middle East cannot be cracked.
He met representatives if AIB, Bank of Ireland and Ulster Bank in the Saudi capital Riyadh this morning to discuss lending levels.
Mr O'Keeffe called on lenders to properly re-engage with small firms and provide them with the working capital needed to move their businesses forward in existing and emerging markets.
"Ireland's economic recovery will be export-led and our export performance is much stronger compared to our counterparts in the eurozone," he said.
"But to capitalise on our strengths and build for recovery, we must drive our export footprint across the globe, particularly in new markets, and our banks are critical to the effort."
A spokesman for Mr O'Keeffe said the decision to include the country's main banks on the trade mission was an effort by the Government to better attune them to the needs of export-led Irish firms and new marketplace challenges.
The trade mission began yesterday in Riyadh and will move on to Jeddah and Dammam in Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi in the UAE later this week.
A total of 45 Irish firms joined Mr O'Keeffe on the trade mission. These companies span sectors sucg as construction, engineering, information communications technology, education, finance and consulting.
