Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg confirmed Wednesday that China has halted deliveries of its aircraft due to ongoing trade tensions with the United States, forcing the company to reroute jets originally built for Chinese airlines. The development marks one of the most direct commercial blows to U.S. industry stemming from President Donald Trump's escalating tariff war with Beijing.
"They have in fact stopped taking delivery of aircraft because of the tariff environment," Ortberg said during an appearance on CNBC. He added that at least two 737 Max jets have already been flown back to the United States from China, with more expected to follow.
The U.S. imposed a sweeping 145% tariff on Chinese imports earlier this month, to which China retaliated with a 125% levy on American goods. While President Trump signaled Tuesday that tariffs may "come down substantially," he also stated, "It won't be zero."
Ortberg noted that Boeing, which generates approximately 70% of its commercial aircraft revenue from international customers, is actively exploring reassigning the undelivered Chinese planes to other carriers. "There's plenty of customers out there looking for the Max aircraft," Ortberg said. "We're not going to wait too long. I'm not going to let this derail the recovery of our company."
Of the 50 jets that had been scheduled for delivery to China this year, 41 have already been built. Boeing is assessing options to re-market those aircraft, while deciding whether to halt production of the remaining nine that are still in the manufacturing pipeline. Boeing was "not going to continue to build aircraft for customers who will not take them," Ortberg said.
Speaking on an investor call, Ortberg added, "There is not a day that goes by that we're not engaged with either cabinet secretaries or POTUS himself regarding the trade war between China and the USA." He remained "very hopeful we'll get to some negotiations."
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, speaking at an International Monetary Fund conference on Wednesday, echoed cautious optimism, calling the upcoming trade meetings an "incredible opportunity" if China was "serious" about rebalancing its economy away from export-heavy manufacturing.
Meanwhile, Boeing reported a narrower-than-expected first-quarter loss and better-than-forecast cash burn, driven by increased aircraft deliveries. The company now plans to raise monthly production of its 737 Max jets to 38 by 2025, following a slump last year caused by a nearly two-month strike involving 30,000 factory workers and ongoing fallout from quality control crises.
Chief Financial Officer Brian West underscored Boeing's commitment to global supply chain stability, saying, "Free trade policy is very important to us," and adding that the company would continue collaborating with suppliers across Japan and Italy, which are also facing new universal tariffs of 10%.
