Boeing shares gain 2% after winning $96B deal with Qatar Airways

Boeing shares surged 2% after the White House announced Boeing, along with GE Aerospace, clinched a $96bn (£72.18 bn) deal to supply 210 aircraft to Qatar Airways.

Boeing shares gained to $209.66 on Wednesday. 

Deal with Qatar Airways

US President Donald Trump announced the deal in the middle of a state visit with Qatar’s Emir, Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani. 

The White House, in its statement, said the deal features the 787 Dreamliner made by Boeing and 777x aircraft with GE Aerospace engines and is the “largest-ever widebody order and largest-ever 787 order.”

Bloomberg reported that Qatar Airways has an option to buy 50 additional aircraft of either make.

Qatar Airways currently has 233 aircraft in its fleet, according to its website. 

The US and Qatar in total signed economic deals worth more than $243.5bn (£183 bn), the White House said in its statement.

The deal with Qatar Airways adds to the recent deals won by the company.

On May 9, the company signed a $13bn (£9.8bn) contract with British Airways’ parent company, International Airlines Group, to supply 32 long-haul jets.

IAG also has the option to buy 10 additional Boeing 787-10 Dreamliners in the future. 

The deal came after the US and UK announced a trade deal to cut back tariffs. 

Chinese action also helps Boeing

Recently, China rolled back a ban on airlines taking Boeing’s aircraft, reported Bloomberg.

China had stopped aircraft acceptance after the US-China trade war heated up, where the US slapped a 145% tariff on Chinese imports.

The US reduced tariffs on Chinese imports to 30% while China cut duties on US goods to 10% for a 90-day period.

The cutback gives Boeing a breather in an important market. Boeing has 50 aircraft planned to deliver to China this year. 

China is also slated to make up 20% of aircraft demand in the next two decades. 

Positive developments help the stock price

Boeing’s shares have gained 20% in the year, outperforming the benchmark S&P 500 index, which is up only 0.36% in the same period.

In its Q1 results, the company narrowed its loss to $31mn (£23.3mn) from $355mn (£267.1mn) in the previous year.

The airline’s revenue increased 18% to $19.5bn (£14.6bn) in the quarter as aircraft deliveries improved by about 60%.

Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg said in the Q1 earnings call that the company still has $500 billion in order backlogs. 

Boeing has struggled with safety concerns for its aircraft and regulatory compliance. Quality issues plagued the 737 Max and its other aircraft. 

The safety concerns caused China to ground Boeing aircraft in 2019, after two crashes, becoming the first nation to do so. 

Question marks emerged around quality after a door plug blew out during mid-flight in 2024. 

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