China Buys 200 Boeing, Its Shares Actually Fall

JAKARTA - China has agreed to buy 200 Boeing planes, said US President Donald Trump. However, the market assessed that the figure was still below expectations. Boeing shares fell 4.7 percent after the announcement.

Citing a report by The Straits Times, Friday, May 15, the multibillion-dollar deal will be China's first purchase of American-made commercial aircraft in nearly a decade.

Previously, Chinese airlines were expected to buy up to 500 Boeing planes, including 737 Max and wide-body planes.

"Boeing wanted 150, they got 200," Trump said in an interview with the Hannity program on Fox News.

Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping met in Beijing this week to discuss a number of issues, ranging from sanctions, trade barriers, to the Iran war.

It is not clear what type of aircraft is included in the deal. Boeing has also not given an official comment.

For Boeing, the news remains important. The company has long not received a large order from China, the world's second largest aviation market.

The deal could also help Boeing's financial recovery under CEO Kelly Ortberg. However, the market is still waiting to see whether the order really enters the fixed order list or just stops as a government deal.

Bloomberg Intelligence analyst George Ferguson said the 200 jet order was disappointing for a market that expected 300 or more.

According to Ferguson, as quoted by Bloomberg, the order will not be included in the definitive list before it is confirmed by the buyer's airline. He also reminded, past deals on aircraft purchases by the Chinese government did not always lead to final transactions.

Over the past decade, China has only ordered 39 Boeing planes. If the latest deal goes through, it could mark China's return to buying planes from the US.

Boeing's relationship with China was disrupted by trade tensions and the 737 Max's long flight ban. China was the first country to ban the plane from flying after two fatal accidents. The Boeing 737 Max was only allowed to fly again in China in 2023.

While Boeing is holding on, Airbus has seized the momentum first. Since July 2022, major Chinese airlines have ordered or committed to purchasing around 700 Airbus aircraft.

China is also developing its own plane, the C919, to compete with the Boeing 737 and Airbus A320. The plane made by the Commercial Aircraft Corp of China has received more than 1,000 orders, mainly from Chinese airlines. However, production and delivery are still slow.

Since returning to the White House, Trump has frequently highlighted Boeing's purchases in trade deals with a number of countries, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and South Korea.

"Boeing gave me the award for best salesperson in Boeing's history," Trump said at a White House business forum in December.