Henry Ford II today said that the Ford Motor Company will start immediate production of the approximately $4,000,000 worth of trucks and buses which have been ordered for shipment to Israel, in accordance with the agreement with the Israeli Government which was announced yesterday. Mr. Ford said that the purchase covers approximately 1,800 vehicles.
Dr. Chaim Weizmann, president of Israel, told Mr. Ford about the new state’s acute transport problems at a New York luncheon conference in April when the President visited the United States, Mr. Ford revealed. At this luncheon Dr. Weizmann outlined the difficulties faced by Israel in this period in the new nation’s existence.
“For this reason, Ford Motor Company is making a departure from its usual commercial policy on sales to foreign governments,” Mr. Ford declared. “In this case, our purchase agreements with Israel specify that an immediate payment of 40 percent of the total will be made in dollars from funds Israel receives from the Export-Import Bank. The company will extend credit on the 60 percent balance, which will be paid in equal annual installments over a three-year period.”
Preliminary discussion leading to the order for the Ford products was held in March when Israeli officials inspected the company’s production facilities in Dearborn. Final details were arranged in Tel Aviv recently in the course of conversations between Israeli officials and Walter L. McKee, Ford International’s regional director for Europe and the Middle and Near East, Mr. Ford said.
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