President Trump has threatened to impose an export ban on aircraft spare parts for Boeing airplanes to China as a trade war with Beijing continues to intensify.
During a press conference at the White House on Friday, Trump suggested that export controls on plane parts could be used as part of retaliatory measures for China placing controls on the export of rare earth minerals.
The President has already announced a 100% tariff on Chinese imports beginning on November 1, but also laid out what other measures could be used against Beijing.
“They (China) have a lot of Boeing planes, and they need parts, and lots of things like that,” Trump said in reply to a question about what items could have export controls placed on them.
The proposed measures come just months after China temporarily banned local airlines from taking delivery of new Boeing airplanes or spare parts from US manufacturers. The ban was imposed in April after the White House threatened 145% tariffs on most Chinese-made goods.
A month later, however, US and Chinese diplomats managed to reach a temporary truce during negotiations in Switzerland.
In the days after the ban was introduced, Boeing was forced to fly several 737MAX single-aisle aircraft out of China that were due for delivery to local airlines.
Deliveries have since resumed, but if the dispute had dragged on, several international airlines had shown interest in picking up planes that couldn’t be delivered to Chinese carriers.
Great way for Boeing and the US to lose marketshare to Airbus and the Europeans.
Well done President Trump! Rare Earth Elements = those are the magnets used in electric cars and other other electronic equipment. China wants to cripple US manufacturing so you have to fight fire with fire.