Boeing raises 20-year forecast for China aircraft demand despite pandemic

Boeing Thursday raised its rolling forecast for China's aircraft demand for the next 20 years, making the country a bright spot in the aviation market even as COVID-19 decimates global deliveries over the next few years. Chinese airlines will need 8,600 new airplanes through 2039, 6.3% higher than Boeing’s previous prediction of 8,090 planes last year. Those would be worth $1.4t based on list prices, the US planemaker said. In October, Boeing cut its 20-year forecast for global airplane demand due to the COVID-19 pandemic. “While COVID-19 has severely impacted every passenger market worldwide, China’s fundamental growth drivers remain resilient and robust,” said Richard Wynne, managing director, China Marketing, Boeing Commercial Airplanes. “Not only has China’s recovery from COVID-19 outpaced the rest of the world, but also continued government investments toward improving and expanding its transportation infrastructure, large regional traffic flows, and a flourishing domestic market mean this region of the world will thrive.”<br/>