Boeing confident in China, but warns recovery depends on reopening

Country a key battleground for U.S. aircraft maker and European rival Airbus

Passengers wait for their flight as a China Eastern flight takes off from the runway of Baiyun Airport on March 25, 2022, in southern China's Guangzhou province. © AP

RHYANNON BARTLETT-IMADEGAWA, Nikkei staff writer

July 24, 2022 17:19 JST

FARNBOROUGH, U.K. -- Boeing remains confident it can compete in China despite Airbus' recent bumper deal and U.S.-China geopolitical tensions, according to a senior figure at the American aircraft maker.

But Ihssane Mounir, senior vice president for commercial sales and marketing at Boeing, also warned that recovery for the industry as a whole depends on China --one of the world's largest aviation markets -- relaxing its COVID-19 restrictions.