Shares in the Boeing Co. sank Wednesday amid confusion over a statement by Chinese officials that they would not approve any additional airplane deliveries for 2005.
The decision, consistent with government efforts to keep China’s sizzling economy from overheating, appears unlikely to have a major effect on manufacturers Boeing and Airbus SAS and their efforts to sell the country new planes still in development, The Associated Press reported.
That’s important to Boeing, which is rumored to be in talks to sell as many as 60 7E7s to Chinese airlines. Airbus also has been pushing China to buy its A380 superjumbo.
About 147 aircraft are scheduled to be delivered to Chinese airlines next year, the official China News Service said, citing Yang Yuanyuan, head of the Civil Aviation Administration of China. “The planes would basically meet the demands of the market growth next year,” Yang was quoted as saying Monday.
“As a result, CAAC is on principal not going to approve additional transportation planes,” Yang said.
Boeing’s stock dropped $1.18, or 2.2 percent, to $52.07 a share Wednesday on the New York Stock Exchange.
The report did not elaborate on Yang’s comments, but it typically takes a year or more before manufacturers deliver aircraft after an order is placed. So Chinese airlines could theoretically purchase more planes in 2005, with deliveries coming in 2006 and beyond.
The first 7E7s won’t be delivered until 2008.
European plane maker Airbus, Boeing and other major aircraft manufacturers have been stepping up investments to capitalize on China’s fast-growing air travel market and meet potentially huge demands for passenger aircraft.
China is seen as the fastest-growing market in the world, and Chinese airlines have been active in the airplane market.
Last week, China Eastern Airlines Corp. said it would buy six 737-700 airplanes from Boeing for $240 million. In October, it agreed to buy 20 A330-300 aircraft from Boeing’s rival, Airbus.
Over the past five years, Boeing has sold 106 jets to airlines in China, including Cathay Pacific, which is based in Hong Kong. More than 40 of them are yet to be built and delivered, including three 747 cargo jets and two 777s from the Everett factory.
“The demands of the air transportation are increasing and we face good opportunity for growth,” Yang said at a conference in Beijing on Monday. “But at this time, the development of the market can easily become overheated.”
Big aircraft purchases and increasing the number of flights could “lead to a decrease in service quality,” he said.
Boeing spokesman John Dern didn’t comment, saying the company does not discuss speculation over movement in its daily stock price.
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