President Donald Trump said Chinese President Xi Jinping agreed to order 200 Boeing planes during his high-level meeting in Beijing.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with Fox News host Sean Hannity, Trump called his talks with the Chinese leader “very good” and said the plane commitment exceeded Boeing’s expectations.
“One thing [Xi] agreed today: he will order 200 planes. It’s a big thing. Boeing – 200 large. That represents a lot of jobs. It’s a lot. Boeing wanted 150, he got 200,” Trump said.
Terms of the deal, including delivery times and aircraft models, were not immediately disclosed.
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President Donald Trump (L) shakes hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, May 14, 2026. (Kenny HOLSTON / POOL / AFP via Getty Images)
Trump arrived in China on Wednesday alongside a delegation of senior officials American business leaders for meetings with Chinese officials and leaders. The visit marks Trump’s first trip to the country since 2017 and comes amid growing tensions over trade, artificial intelligence, Taiwan and fallout from the war with Iran.
Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg was among those executives and recently said the trip represented “a significant opportunity” for the aerospace giant.
Although Ortberg declined to specify the number of planes under discussion during a recent analyst call, he said he was “highly confident” that if Trump reached a deal with Xi, the deal “would include some aircraft orders”.
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Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg testifies before the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee on production quality issues on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, April 2, 2025. (Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images / Getty Images)
Bloomberg previously reported that China was considering purchasing around 500 Boeing 737 Max aircraft to meet growing airline demand.
Boeing shares fell more than 4% on Thursday after reported order totals fell short of analysts’ expectations, according to Reuters.
China last announced a major purchase of Boeing during Trump’s visit to Beijing in 2017, agreeing to buy 300 planes from the American manufacturer, the outlet reported.
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Members of the U.S. delegation and CEOs from various industries stand before a welcoming ceremony for U.S. President Donald Trump in front of the Great Hall of the People, May 14, 2026, in Beijing, China. (VCG/VCG via Getty Images/Getty Images)
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Boeing and its European rival Airbus are competing aggressively for plane sales in China, one of the world’s largest aviation markets.
Other executives traveling with the US delegation included Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, Tim Cook, CEO of Apple, Larry Fink, CEO of BlackRock, Jane Fraser, CEO of Citi, and Brian Sikes, CEO of Cargill.
Reuters, Jasmine Baehr and Efrat Lachter of Fox News Digital, and Eric Revell of FOX Business contributed to this report.