Boeing plan for finishing center to stir up China market

Boeing's rival－Airbus SAS－has already established facilities in China and also is expanding its presence.

Airbus set up an A320 final assembly line in Tianjin in 2008. In addition, the company has also extended its cooperation on the A320 final assembly line from 2016 to 2025.

The European aircraft builder has signed an agreement with Chinese partners to build up a completion and delivery center in Tianjin for its wide-body product－Airbus 330－in July.

Airbus delivered 153 aircraft to Chinese carriers in 2014, accounting for 24.3 percent of its global deliveries, while 155 airplanes were bought from Boeing by China during the same period.

Wang Ya'nan, deputy editor-in-chief of Aerospace Knowledge magazine, said that the new center will be able to cater to Chinese demands directly. More importantly, the facility will be an indication that Boeing is keen on being a part of the civil aviation manufacturing industry in China and keen to partner with local firms, Wang said.

"The Airbus 320 final assembly line and the likely Boeing 737 center will put pressure on the C919, China's domestically made passenger airplane, as they are direct competitors," said Wang.