Boeing has a China problem – and a solution

Boeing is collateral damage to the United States Trade War with China.

The American aircraft manufacturer said he had about 50 planes that Must be sold to other airlines. Chinese customers have said they will not take deliveries due to prices.

“Right now, China is our only problem,” Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg said on Wednesday. “We are going to work on our tail to make sure that the problem of China does not imply our recovery.”

Boeing’s financial director Brian West said China represented 10% of the company’s commercial backwards. He said Boeing was looking for ways to redirect his planes to places with greater “stable demand”.

The 50 aircraft bound for China worth more than a billion dollars in income, West said.

Chinese airlines have returned two planes completed in the United States, and it is planned to return a third, Ortberg said on CNBC on Wednesday.

But years of delays in delivery mean that other customers are lining up.

The CEO of Malaysia Aviation Group – The parent company of the country’s national carrier, Malaysia Airlines – said the state media Let him speak with Boeing to take over the delivery slots.

“We really had a good start to the year, and I’m glad we have developed a conservative plan that allows us to face the prices,” said Ortberg.

Boeing declared $ 19.5 billion in income in the first quarter, up 18% compared to last year. He reduced losses to $ 31 million.

Boeing shares closed 6% on Wednesday.

Talk to Potus himself

Boeing leaders have expressed their concerns about President Donald Trump’s prices on the rest of the world, including what is happening if other countries follow the traces of China.

“I do not think that a day passes where we are not engaged with someone in the administration, including the cabinets, the secretaries of the cabinet and to Potus himself,” said Ortberg. He added: “The planes are such an important part of our trade surplus, and if we see markets close, it will be a big challenge for us.”

Managers said most of the Boeing supply chain is based in the United States, and many of their imports to Mexico and Canada have pricing. However, they estimated that higher prices could cost the company $ 500 million per year.

Boeing is recovering from a series of successes last year, including a strike by mass workers and financial losses. The taxation of deliveries threatens its market share in competition with Airbus in Europe and new entrants from China.