Boeing in Deal to Sell 300 Jets to China

The deal sets a new record for the aircraft industry, surpassing an order finalized in 2015 by Indian airline IndiGo for 250 Airbus planes worth some United States dollars 26.5 billion.

The massive order, which was not immediately confirmed by Boeing, demonstrates the vital importance of the Chinese market despite a growth slowdown that threatens to slow the expansion of air travel.

The company was due to announce later on Wednesday an agreement to build a 737 completion center in China that would be used to install aircraft interiors, paint and deliver 737s built at Boeing’s factory in Renton, Washington.

The newspaper, which is run by the official news agency Xinhua, gave few details – including who had put the proposal forward – but said an update could be expected as early as this week.

But it is likely to be one of the biggest orders of recent times.

Xi planned to visit Boeing’s Paine Field assembly plant during the Seattle leg of his trip before moving on to Washington, D.C.to meet President Barack Obama.

“Expectations are appropriately low”, he said, adding that some USA companies have been frustrated with the pace of economic reform in China. He said, “as we ramp up capabilities in China, including additional 737-related work, the actions that we’ll take are actions that will also allow us to grow jobs here in the U.S.”.

Boeing last month upgraded its forecast for China’s plane demand to 6,330 new jets with a sticker price of $950 billion over the next 20 years.

A Boeing factory in China would represent an about-turn in the U.S. giant’s strategy in the crucial market, where European rival Airbus has a final assembly operation for medium-range Airbus 320 aircraft in the northern port of Tianjin and plans to open a new completion and delivery centre for long-haul A-330s.

But China wants some of the market to go to its own homegrown planes. The aircraft leasing arms of Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd. and China Development Bank each agreed to buy 30 more 737s.

COMAC is already developing a Chinese narrow-body, the C919, as well as a smaller regional jet, the ARJ21, in the commercial hub Shanghai.

China’s state planning agency also signed an agreement with Boeing to promote cooperation in the aviation industry, Xinhua said.