Reuters reported that Boeing's CFO, Brian West, expressed concern about the risk that US President Donald Trump's new tariffs could hinder the import of components from suppliers, but still affirmed that the US aircraft maker still has enough inventory in stock.
Speaking at the US Bank's industrial conference, Mr. West revealed that Boeing is expected to suffer a loss of $150 million in the first quarter of 2025. He explained that the company's financial balance sheet is under pressure from slow delivery of commercial aircraft and costs arising from fixed-priced contracts in the defense and aerospace sectors.
However, the director still believes that Boeing's cash flow in the coming period could improve by hundreds of millions of USD. After this statement, Boeing shares immediately increased to 6%.
Mr. West noted that although the tariffs may affect Boeing's financial situation, they do not reduce customer demand for the airline. The company currently has more than 5,000 outstanding orders, most of which are the 737 series.
Meanwhile, responding to an interview with Politico earlier this month, Antwerp University ( Belgian) air transport economist Wouter Dewulf said that the new US tariffs could force Boeing to bear additional raw material costs, leading to higher production costs and a decrease in profit margins per aircraft.
Mr. Dewulf said that if the Trump administration imposes a 10-25% tax on imported aircraft, Airbus prices could increase significantly. However, when EU countervailing tariffs are implemented, Boeing will also become expensive in the European market. In that context, Airbus will have an advantage when it owns manufacturing facilities in Alabama, Mississippi and Florida, while Boeing does not have factories in the EU.
The expert warned that in addition to some unfavorable signs in Europe, Boeing is also facing the risk of a decline in sales in China - the fastest growing aviation market in the world.
Mr. Dewulf emphasized that Boeing will be the bigest victim, especially when the four largest Chinese airlines are likely to shift to using domestic aircraft such as COMAC or even buy Airbus from Europe.
Mr. Dewulf said that China is unlikely to expand orders with Boeing in the near future, creating an opportunity for Airbus to increase market share, especially in the wide-body aircraft segment with the A330 and A350 series.
According to Dak hardwick, Vice President of the Aerospace Industry Association of America, decades-long trade agreements have boosted the civil aviation and defense industries, bringing a trade balance to the US over the past 40 years.
However, the tariffs on imports that Mr. Trump will impose to protect the fairness of the US could reverse that positive trend, Mr. hardwick commented.
Previously, President Trump announced a 25% tariff on imported goods from the European Union (EU), accusing the bloc of being created to oppress the United States. He will also apply aluminum and steel tariffs from April 2, stressing that there are no exceptions even in the alliance.
In a response, Brussels said it was ready to use commercial weapons including tariff quotas and foreign investment restrictions.
