During his state visit to the United States, the Chinese President Xi Jinping, went through the Boeing dossier in depth. It cost him 300 aircraft, and $ 38 billion, but allowed him to obtain the establishment of a factory in China; a B737 completion and delivery centre, which according to our information, will be located in Zhoushan, south of Shanghai, where the Chinese manufacturer Comac is also installed. This will be the first Boeing factory constructed outside the United States, and by so doing follows suit with their rival Airbus.
A must for Philippe Boissat, Senior Aerospace and Defense Advisor, Deloitte - Europe who analyses this change in strategy as follows: "To remain number 1, Boeing has no choice but to be in China. Adaptation is primordial, and that is what Boeing is doing. It makes good economic sense. Better to have that kind of approach than not be in the market. I don’t think they have come in too late, but it’s true that Airbus certainly gained an advantage by taking the initiative. This is a kind of counter-attack, but it was essential. If it hadn’t happened, it would’ve been very damaging to Boeing because they would’ve left Airbus running around alone."
20 years ago, before assembling their aircraft on Chinese soil, Airbus accounted for only 4% of the Chinese market. Today that has increased to 50%, on a par with Boeing, who do not want to get left behind with all those enticing business prospects in view. Over the next 20 years, more than 6,300 new aircraft are likely to be ordered by Chinese companies for the tidy little sum of $ 950 billion.