Boeing Sees Slimmed-Down Chinese Order Amid Trade Talks
China's planned order of Boeing aircraft may not be as large as initially hoped. According to Reuters, two people briefed on the matter said that talks remain fluid and Boeing has scaled back its expectations from hundreds of new aircraft to completing a deal reached in May for 200 planes. The deal was seen as a breakthrough for Boeing after it had been shut out of the Chinese market since 2017.
Richard Aboulafia, managing director at AeroDynamic Advisory, said that holding on to the 200-plane order would be a win for Boeing, but Scott Kennedy, a China expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, downplayed the importance of a new aircraft deal. He said officials on both sides are more focused on extending the trade truce and agreements covering artificial intelligence safeguards, arms sales to Taiwan, and soybean and rare earth exports.
The May agreement was a provisional deal struck in connection with the Beijing summit between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping. It marked Boeing's return to competition for Chinese passenger-jet orders, which are expected to total around 9,000 by 2045, according to market forecasts from Airbus and Boeing.