China blames US tariffs for halting Boeing plane deliveries

BEIJING - China on Tuesday blamed US tariffs for Beijing's decision to stop accepting new aircraft from aviation giant Boeing, saying the levies had "disrupted the international air transport market".

"The United States' wielding of tariffs has severely impacted the stability of the global industrial chain and supply chain," China's commerce ministry said in a statement.

"Relevant Chinese airlines and Boeing in the United States have suffered greatly," a spokesperson said.

New US tariffs have reached 145 per cent on many Chinese products, while Beijing has responded with fresh 125 per cent duties on imports from the United States.

And Boeing's CEO confirmed last week that China had stopped accepting new aircraft due to the trade war.

In a televised interview with CNBC, Boeing chief executive Kelly Ortberg said Chinese customers had "stopped taking delivery of aircraft due to the tariff environment", adding that if the halt continued, the aviation giant would soon market the jets to other carriers.

Boeing had planned to deliver around 50 aircraft to China in 2025, said Ortberg, adding that the company wouldn't "wait too long" to send the jets to other customers.

US President Donald Trump also criticised Beijing for backing out of the deal, saying Boeing should "default China for not taking the beautifully finished planes".

Beijing's commerce ministry on Tuesday hit back, saying "many companies have been unable to carry out normal trade and investment activities" due to Trump's tariffs.

"China is willing to continue to support the normal business cooperation between the two countries' enterprises," its spokesperson said.

Beijing "hopes that the United States can listen to the voices of enterprises and create a stable and predictable environment for their normal trade and investment activities," they added. - AFP