New Zealand Export Credit Office Accessibility Skip to content. Skip to navigation

You are here: Home > Glossary

Glossary

  1. A
  2. B
  3. C
  4. D
  5. E
  6. F
  7. G
  8. H
  9. I
  10. J
  11. K
  12. L
  13. M
  14. N
  15. O
  16. P
  17. Q
  18. R
  19. S
  20. T
  21. U
  22. V
  23. W
  24. X
  25. Y
  26. Z
 OECD

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is an international organisation of countries that share a commitment to democratic government and the market economy.   It currently has 30 member countries: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Japan, Italy, Luxembourg, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

 OECD Consensus Agreement

Officially known as the "Arrangement on Guidelines for Officially Supported Export Credits", this is a “Gentlemen’s Agreement” among most of the OECD members. The Arrangement sets out the most generous terms and conditions that may be allowed for export credits with a repayment term of two years or more. These include minimum premium levels, rules around deposit and repayment, and maximum credit periods.  The purpose of this Arrangement is to limit and eventually eliminate distortions caused by the provision of export credit.

 Obligee

The individual, business or organisation name in a surety bond in whose favor the obligor promises performance.  The person, firm or corporation protected by the bond.

 Obligor

In a surety bond, the principal or party bound by the obligation.  Under a surety bond, both the principal and the surety company are obligors, as the surety must respond should the principal default.

 Open account

Where goods are shipped to a foreign buyer and payment is made on the basis of invoices, usually in cash.  Because there are no bills of exchange or promissory notes, the exporter has no guarantee of payment and therefore this trade arrangement is most commonly used where the exporter and buyer have a strong, long-standing trading relationship.