Chief Executive Officer of Boeing Co. warned that a U.S. turn toward isolation would hamper exports and hurt the economy, pushing back against protectionist rhetoric as the country prepares for a crucial presidential election.
“We are a company that relies on trade,” outgoing CEO Dave Calhoun said in an interview on stage at the Berlin Aviation Summit on Tuesday. “I’ll be the first to admit that this seems to be going in the wrong direction and has been for quite some time.”
Calhoun expressed no preference between the presumptive candidates, incumbent President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump. Biden last month raised tariffs on a range of Chinese goods, including battery-powered cars, while Trump said the measures had no effect. far enough.
Aircraft purchases can rise or fall depending on economic conditions, especially in fast-growing markets such as China. European rival Airbus SE has sought to strengthen its position in that market through local production, while Boeing’s business there has been held back by deteriorating relations between the two countries.
Calhoun said Boeing was working to resume aircraft deliveries to China that had been grounded as regulators there scrutinized the design of a new cockpit voice recorder for the 737 Max and 787 Dreamliner. Bloomberg previously reported that low-cost carrier 9Air expected delivery of the 737 this week.
The halt in deliveries to China has hampered Boeing’s efforts to fill the backlog of completed planes destined for the Asian country, which has been delayed since the grounding of the 737 Max in 2019 following two fatal crashes.
Resuming those transfers will help Boeing limit cash leaks as it retools its factories to address safety concerns stemming from the latest 737 crash, an exploding fuselage panel in January.
“Another company”
Calhoun said Boeing is a “different company” after the Jan. 5 crash, when a fuselage panel ejected from a nearly new 737 Max 9, frightening passengers aboard the Alaska Air Group Inc. flight.
Although no one was seriously injured, the accident triggered a wave of regulatory scrutiny of the American planemaker and forced the company to curb production of the Boeing 737, its biggest source of profit. Calhoun agreed to step down at the end of the year as part of management reform.
Calhoun said he would continue to lobby for free trade and expressed support for a strong NATO. Trump criticized U.S. and European defense coalition members, demanding allies meet their spending commitments as a condition of protection.
Airbus and Boeing have sparred for decades over government policies that give any hint of advantage to one side or the other, even as the two dominant plane makers support the benefits of free trade.
Calhoun said he is concerned that the lockdown will hurt the economy in the long term. His concerns echo those of other major exporters, including Germany automakersthat protectionist policies would poison the market for companies that rely on selling their goods abroad.
“Isolation breeds frustration; frustration ultimately leads to political upheaval,” Calhoun said. “It’s a world I’m worried about in terms of isolation and I don’t like any of the signs I see.”