Daily Insight: Tuesday 14 May 2019: China’s Trump Card – Boeing

News

An editor-in-chief from China dropped a hint that commercial aircraft may be impacted shortly as China reacts to tariffs imposed by Donald Trump in the on-going trade dispute.  As China is the largest potential market for the troubled 737 MAX, selling to the Chinese may be critical to Boeing’s future cash flows and competitive position.

Until now, China has been careful to play off Airbus and Boeing against each other, typically ordering equal number of planes from each.  However, with tariffs on Chinese goods being imposed by President Trump, it is expected that China could retaliate with tariffs on US-built aircraft, which would likely cripple Boeing sales in that country.  While we do not expect China to be able to meet its internal growth targets without Boeing airplanes, a delay could send a chilling message to Washington.