Sept 19 (Askume) – China Development Bank Financial Leasing (1606.HK) said its aircraft leasing unit will order 50 Boeing (BA.N) 737 Max 8 jets, giving the plane maker a boost to bring forward orders from China.
Purchases of Boeing planes by Chinese customers have declined since U.S.-China trade relations soured in 2018, and the manufacturer faces a long return to service of the Max in China after two deadly crashes.
Data on Boeing’s website shows the order of 50 MAX planes is the largest by a Chinese customer since China Southern Airlines (600029.SS) ordered the same number of MAX planes in 2015. Boeing declined to comment.
The aircraft maker has gradually increased its supplies to China in recent months after a long gap .
The aviation leasing company will take delivery of the aircraft between 2028 and 2031, increasing the proportion of next-generation aircraft in its fleet, CDB’s parent company said in a statement.
The deal comes less than a week after more than 30,000 Boeing factory workers went on strike demanding higher pay and an end to production of planes including the aircraft maker’s best-selling jet, the Max.
Boeing said on Wednesday that thousands of workers would be furloughed because of the strike.
The Max order is the second major aircraft deal announced by China Development Bank Financial Leasing last week . The company said last week it would buy 80 Airbus planes(AIR.PA) will buy A320neo aircraft, with deliveries expected to begin in 2030.
