China Export and Credit Insurance Company (Sinosure) is to insure the movie The Banquet, a film to be released overseas, against payment risks.

 

The insurance policy, signed between Sinosure and Huayi Brothers and Taihe Film Investment Company on Wednesday, is valued at US$15 to 20 million.

 

The insurance policy helped the renowned private film maker obtain a loan of 50 million yuan (US$6.25 million) from Shenzhen Development Bank to finance the shooting of the film.

 

This is the first time that Sinosure has attempted to encourage the export of cultural products, said Zhou Ji'an, vice president of Sinosure.

 

Most Chinese film makers sell their copyright or screening rights to a film at a low price to avoid potential losses when their films reach the international market, said Wang Zhongjun, general manager of Huayi Brothers Company, adding that this often deprives them of revenues they deserve.

 

The government has a role to play in developing the cultural industry, said Zhou Ji'an, taking South Korea as an example, where exports of films and TV plays have increased 60-fold in the past five years mainly due to export credit insurance.

 

Sinosure, founded in 2001, is the only policy-oriented Chinese insurance company that specializes in export credit insurance. It encourages Chinese exports and foreign investment by covering risks associated with buyer's breach of contract or inability to settle debt.

 

Lack of a mature marketing and release mechanism has hampered exports of China's cultural products, which have won fame in the international market.

 

Statistics show that in 2004 China exported only 14 copyright products to the US, while importing 4,068.

 

Sinosure will support any enterprise engaged in the export of cultural products as long as it can prove its good credit status, said Zhou Ji'an.

 

(Xinhua News Agency August 24, 2006)