Airbus and Boeing hide identity of US$35.4 billion Chinese buyers as trade war creates minefield for international companies
Airbus and Boeing won’t name the customers who’ve placed multibillion-dollar orders, as the US-China trade war creates a minefield for companies that do business in both countries
Airbus and Boeing usually don’t miss a chance to celebrate their biggest orders at the annual air shows – typically, top executives will trumpet them loudly at signing ceremonies staffed with a phalanx of smiling flight attendants.
Not this year. On the first three days at the Farnborough expo taking place outside London, Airbus has cloaked the identity of the customer behind US$24.4 billion in orders at list prices. Boeing followed suit regarding deals struck for planes valued at US$11 billion before customary discounts.
Boeing has a lot to lose in China as Trump, Xi clash over trade
Why? Airbus’s sales chief points the finger at US President Donald Trump, whose trade war with China has created a minefield for global companies that do business in both countries.
“The world today is governed by the tweets we receive every morning from one side of the Atlantic,” Eric Schulz, the top salesman at Airbus, said at an investor presentation on Wednesday. “So you know that that is putting a lot of pressure within the airlines, it’s putting a lot of pressure within the governments.”
Some customers, especially in Asia, have asked Airbus “not to fuel the fire”, Schulz said.
Some of the hidden orders came from customers in China, according to people familiar with the matter who asked not to be identified discussing non-public information. Trump is locked in a trade war with the United States’ biggest rival for global economic dominance.