US-China Tariff Showdown: Boeing Planes Returned to the US

Boeing 737 MAX aircraft. (Illustration photo. Getty Images/VNA)

Data from the flight tracking site AirNav Radar shows that the 737 MAX left Boeing's Zhoushan completion center near Shanghai on the morning of April 21 and was heading toward Guam, a US territory in the Pacific Ocean.

Guam is one of the stops on flights that run about 8,000 kilometers between Boeing's manufacturing center in Seattle and its Zhoushan completion center, where planes are shipped for final assembly before being delivered to Chinese airlines.

Previously, on April 20, a 737 MAX painted in the signature colors of Chinese airline Xiamen also made a return trip from Zhoushan and landed at Boeing's airport in Seattle.

It is not yet clear which side made the decision to turn the two planes back to the US.

This month, Mr. Trump raised tariffs on Chinese imports to 145% and some items to 245%. In response, China imposed 125% tariffs on American goods.

According to aviation consultancy IBA, each new 737 MAX has a market value of about $55 million. In that context, taking delivery of new aircraft could hit Chinese airlines hard if they have to pay more tariffs.

The plane that just turned around had left Seattle for Zhoushan less than a month ago. Boeing has yet to officially respond to the incident.

The return of Boeing's best-selling 737 MAX aircraft highlights the disruption in new aircraft deliveries as long-standing tax breaks in the aerospace industry are being disrupted.

The escalating tariff war and disrupted deliveries come as planemaker Boeing struggles to recover from a nearly five-year export ban on its 737 MAX and a period of trade tensions before that.

The lack of clarity on the new tax policy could cause aircraft deliveries to stall, with some airline executives saying they would delay taking delivery of new aircraft rather than pay the high tax rates./.

According to VNA

Source: https://baothanhhoa.vn/cuoc-doi-dau-thue-quan-giua-my-trung-quoc-may-bay-boeing-bi-tra-nguoc-lai-my-246358.htm