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" The brain trust at Boeing, among the city's largest companies and a global aerospace and defense powerhouse, must cringe every time President-elect Donald Trump riffs on foreign policy, especially when it comes to dealing with China. Admittedly, that's my supposition because Dennis Muilenburg, Boeing's CEO, has made only measured comments about the administration's emerging international views.
But count on a mercurial Trump administration to test the Boeing CEO's statesmanship, especially when it comes to dealing with China — a multibillion-dollar Boeing commercial airline customer.
It looks like Trump is eager for a China confrontation. This week, he launched a Twitter barrage chiding that country's trade, monetary and political policies. His comments came after he participated in a controversial phone call with the leader of Taiwan that China — which considers the island a rebel province — viewed as an insult.
The last thing Boeing, with $96 billion in annual revenues, wants is an international trade war that could raise tariffs or greatly disrupt long-standing, albeit imperfect, global agreements. Boeing risks retaliation and facing greater state-backed overseas competition.
However, in remarks before the Illinois Manufacturers' Association last week, Muilenburg conceded there's more populist concern about international pacts than before the 2016 election campaign.
"I'm not a political pundit or prognosticator — we have too many of those — but anyone who paid attention to the recent campaigns and the election results realizes that one of the overarching themes was apprehension about free and fair trade," he said.
Muilenburg argues that international trade is essential to the U.S. economy and its importance is reflected in the "large and growing percentage of our business" coming from international sales, including commercial jet orders from China.
"Last year, we delivered 495 737s from our factory in Renton, Wash., to customers around the world. One in every 3 of those 737s were bound for China. And about a quarter of all our airplane deliveries … were bound for Chinese customers. This phenomenon would have been unimaginable when I started at the company in 1985," said Muilenburg, who began his Boeing career as an aerospace engineer. "
http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/columnists/ct-boeing-china-trump-robert-reed-1206-biz-20161205-column.html
But count on a mercurial Trump administration to test the Boeing CEO's statesmanship, especially when it comes to dealing with China — a multibillion-dollar Boeing commercial airline customer.
It looks like Trump is eager for a China confrontation. This week, he launched a Twitter barrage chiding that country's trade, monetary and political policies. His comments came after he participated in a controversial phone call with the leader of Taiwan that China — which considers the island a rebel province — viewed as an insult.
The last thing Boeing, with $96 billion in annual revenues, wants is an international trade war that could raise tariffs or greatly disrupt long-standing, albeit imperfect, global agreements. Boeing risks retaliation and facing greater state-backed overseas competition.
However, in remarks before the Illinois Manufacturers' Association last week, Muilenburg conceded there's more populist concern about international pacts than before the 2016 election campaign.
"I'm not a political pundit or prognosticator — we have too many of those — but anyone who paid attention to the recent campaigns and the election results realizes that one of the overarching themes was apprehension about free and fair trade," he said.
Muilenburg argues that international trade is essential to the U.S. economy and its importance is reflected in the "large and growing percentage of our business" coming from international sales, including commercial jet orders from China.
"Last year, we delivered 495 737s from our factory in Renton, Wash., to customers around the world. One in every 3 of those 737s were bound for China. And about a quarter of all our airplane deliveries … were bound for Chinese customers. This phenomenon would have been unimaginable when I started at the company in 1985," said Muilenburg, who began his Boeing career as an aerospace engineer. "
http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/columnists/ct-boeing-china-trump-robert-reed-1206-biz-20161205-column.html
