Boeing Stock Rises on 500-Plus Jet China Deal Talks
Boeing stock is tied to a reported sale of 500 or more aircraft to China’s three major carriers as President Trump heads to China, with Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg joining the trip. For Boeing, that would mean a return to a market that had been largely shut off for years and a fresh opening for its 737 MAX family.
Ortberg Joins Trump’s China Trip
The order being discussed is heavily weighted toward the 737 MAX family, and a signing during the summit would be Boeing’s first Chinese order since 2017. Richard Safran of Seaport Global Securities said, "The Administration doesn’t effectively pre-announce a deal unless it’s a fait-accompli."
He added, "That Ortberg is going over there is a pretty good sign the reports are correct." Safran also said, "The primary reason for him to go is for a photo-op with Chinese officials."
100 Planes Versus 500
Just over 100 Boeing planes have gone to China since the blockage started seven years ago, and shipments resumed in January 2024. By contrast, Boeing welcomed about 100 MAX aircraft in China in 2018 alone, before China grounded the MAX in March 2019 after the fatal Ethiopian Airlines crash and the earlier Lion Air disaster.
500 or more aircraft would reset Boeing’s China pipeline at a scale the company has not seen since the ban. Safran said, "getting Boeing’s formerly biggest customer back in the game bolsters the case for its airplanes, and especially its best-selling 737 MAX family."
2043 Market Race
Boeing expects to exit 2025 delivering 52 737s, a reminder of how much the China business still matters to the production line. Boeing and Airbus both forecast that China will rank as the world’s largest aircraft market by 2043, with China’s commercial fleet expected to double to nearly 10,000 planes by then.
A deal at this size would put Boeing back in front of three major Chinese carriers at a moment when the company is still trying to rebuild volume after years of disruption. Safran said, "Trump loves to trumpet when he brings business to the U.S."
