China offers olive branch to US firms after Boeing delivery halt
Summary
Beijing is willing to support normal business cooperation with American firms, China’s commerce ministry said, coming days after Chinese airlines were ordered to stop taking delivery of Boeing aircraft.
Beijing is willing to support normal business cooperation with American firms, China’s commerce ministry said, coming days after Chinese airlines were ordered to stop taking delivery of Boeing aircraft.
The Chinese commerce ministry on Tuesday said that U.S. tariffs had harmed China’s airlines and Boeing. It expressed hope that the U.S. government would listen to businesses and create a stable, predictable environment for trade and investment.
“The U.S.’s wielding of tariffs has severely impacted the stability of the global industrial chain and supply chain, disrupted the international air transport market, and prevented many companies from carrying out normal trade and investment activities," it said.
The comments came after Beijing earlier this month told Chinese airlines not to place new orders for Boeing jets, asking them to seek approval before taking delivery of aircraft they had ordered.
The planemaker is the latest major U.S. firm caught in the crossfire of the trade war between the world’s two largest economies. President Trump has slapped a 145% tariff on Chinese products, which Beijing retaliated to with a 125% levy on American goods. Beijing has also put dozens of U.S. firms on its trade control lists and has launched an anti-monopoly investigation into chemical giant DuPont.
Analysts say the steep tariffs make it impractical for China to import US-made aircraft. Since the deliveries were halted, Boeing has begun to fly back planes previously destined for Chinese airlines.
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