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Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg is among the group of American business leaders who have traveled to China with President Donald Trump and is pursuing what could be a sizable deal for the planemaker.
Ortberg said on a call with analysts last month that the visit represents “a meaningful opportunity for us,” though he cautioned that he thinks a deal is “100% dependent on the U.S.-China negotiations and relations.”
“I’m not going to give you the number of airplanes, but it’s a big number,” Ortberg told analysts of the potential order Boeing may land.
He said that he is “highly confident” that if Trump reaches an agreement with Chinese President Xi Jinping, the deal will “include some aircraft orders.”
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“President Trump has been very focused on supporting us in international campaigns, and he’s been very successful in doing that,” Ortberg added.
Bloomberg reported that China is considering a deal for about 500 of Boeing’s 737 Max jetliners, which would help Chinese airlines in need of new aircraft, according to people familiar with the matter.
The outlet also reported that Boeing and China are in discussions about selling around 100 Boeing 787 Dreamliner and 777X widebody jetliners, though the deal isn’t expected to be a focal point in this week’s summit and would likely move forward at a later date, with the 737 Max deal the immediate focus.
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| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BA | THE BOEING CO. | 240.62 | +3.74 | +1.58% |
Orders of jetliners from Boeing are expected to be a key portion of a broader agreement between the U.S. and China if Trump and Xi are able to reach an agreement, along with other farm goods and other items.
Energy purchases may also be on the table, while China wants the U.S. to allow tech companies to sell Chinese firms advanced artificial intelligence (AI) chips as the world’s two largest economies race to advance AI capabilities.
Other corporate leaders who are traveling to China with the U.S. delegation include Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, outgoing Apple CEO Tim Cook, BlackRock CEO Larry Fink, Citi CEO Jane Fraser, Cargill CEO Brian Sikes and several other leaders of prominent U.S. companies.
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“Besides Boeing and Cargill being linked to purchase agreements, the others are mainly there to deliver demands on critical input supply,” said Reva Goujon, a geopolitical strategist at Rhodium Group.
“This could help the U.S. administration’s messaging that to even be able to discuss a board of investment, China needs to be a reliable investment partner and not weaponize supply,” Goujon added.
Reuters contributed to this report.
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