British exporters have received more than 12 billion pounds of national financial support to maintain Britain’s trade with the rest of the world through Brexit and the pandemic.

UK export financingAccording to its annual report released on Wednesday, the government’s export credit agency provided British companies with the highest level of financial support in 30 years in the 12 months to the end of March. This is almost three times the amount in the previous fiscal year, helping to export to 77 countries.

The agency aims to support viable UK exports through loan guarantees, insurance and direct loans to help them win, perform and receive compensation for under-supplied international businesses in the private sector.

UKEF has provided more than £7 billion in support to companies affected by the epidemic, such as Rolls Royce, Ford, easyJet and British Airways, while providing trade guarantees and insurance to encourage the private sector to provide loans to exporters.

It also helps exporters facing the risk of Brexit, for example, after a car manufacturer promised to start business in the UK, it provided a guarantee of 480 million pounds for a business loan of 600 million pounds in March 2021.

British exporters, especially small businesses, complain A lot of red tape and cost Trade with the European Union after Brexit.

Many people also warned that the trade agreements reached by the government so far have had little effect, and instead have caused them to readjust their operations and move production and distribution overseas.

Export Minister Graham Stewart said: “We are opening up the world’s fastest-growing market through a trade agreement under negotiation so that the UK can recover from the pandemic as soon as possible.”

There were 549 companies supported by financing guarantees, which more than doubled over the previous two years.

The agency also underwritten its largest civil infrastructure project in history, building two monorail lines and providing trains in Cairo with a guarantee of £1.7 billion, the first such export in 12 years.

The export agency is now planning to expand its coverage of companies focused on zero-carbon programs.

Stewart will say on Wednesday that UKEF will set up a renewable energy, energy and carbon management team to underwrite activities in areas such as wind power, solar, green hydrogen, grid resilience and decommissioning. UKEF also pledged to end its support for overseas new fossil fuel projects.

Last year, UKEF launched a new program to encourage post-Brexit trade and small businesses to take advantage of the new trade agreement.

In this case, exporters can apply for larger loans from five main street banks in the UK and receive 80% guarantee support, which can be used to cover export-related costs and expand business operations.

Marcus Dolman, co-chairman of the British Exporters Association, said that such new products “have proven their value to British exporters and supporting British employment.”