Boeing confident in China, but warns recovery depends on reopening

Boeing remains confident it can compete in China despite Airbus' recent bumper deal and US-China geopolitical tensions, according to a senior figure at the American aircraft maker. But Ihssane Mounir, senior vice president for commercial sales and marketing at Boeing, also warned that recovery for the industry as a whole depends on China --one of the world's largest aviation markets -- relaxing its COVID-19 restrictions. "I would say our business and our relationships with the Chinese market transcend the geopolitics. They transcend any of these temporary issues," Mounir said Wednesday. Travel within China will constitute the largest passenger flow in 2041, and the country will account for 21% of new airplane deliveries by the same year, according to the Boeing Commercial Market Outlook 2022. This makes the country a key battleground for manufacturing rivals Boeing and Airbus. China has traditionally represented 20% to 25% of Boeing's business, according to Mounir. Asia represents more than 60% of demand for its widebody craft. Observers have pointed to continuing U.S.-China tensions as well as the two fatal crashes of the Boeing 737 Max and their fallout as possible reasons why the U.S. company lost out on the recent deal. Mounir, however, downplayed European rival Airbus' deal with Chinese airlines earlier this month, which is said to be worth more than $37b. "You can't just look at one transaction," he cautioned, adding that market share in China with their competitor is currently "pretty much 50/50." Pointing to Boeing's 50-year history of working in China, he said, "I suspect we will get back to normal business in China fairly soon."<br/>