Juneyao Air (HO, Shanghai Hongqiao) has deferred delivery of a B787-9 because of increased tariffs recently imposed on US imports, according to Bloomberg. The airline was expected to take delivery of the aircraft within the next few weeks.
China recently imposed a 125% tariff on US-manufactured products. This followed President Donald Trump increasing the tariffs on Chinese imports to the US to 145%.
Juneyao Air operates nine B787-9s, with another on order. According to ch-aviation fleets data, that aircraft is msn 1053. The aircraft type undertakes scheduled flights from Juneyao's Shanghai hub to Athens, Brussels National, Guangzhou, Helsinki Vantaa, Manchester, Melbourne Airport, Osaka Kansai, Singapore Changi, Sydney Kingsford Smith, Tokyo Narita, and Zhengzhou. Bloomberg notes that the delay of the tenth B787-9 may delay further planned route expansion and hinder the ramp-up of recently launched routes to Athens and Brussels.
Neither Juneyao Air nor Boeing responded to a request for comment.
Including the Juneyao Air B787-9, thirteen Chinese airlines currently have 137 aircraft on order at Boeing. These include five B737-8s ordered by Air China (CA, Beijing Capital); one B777-200F ordered by Air China Cargo (CA, Beijing Capital); two B737-8s and five B787-9s ordered by China Eastern Airlines (MU, Shanghai Hongqiao); thirty-four B737-8s and one B787-9 ordered by China Southern Airlines (CZ, Guangzhou); two B737-8s and ten B737-10s ordered by Donghai Airlines (DZ, Shenzhen); eight B737-8s ordered by Hainan Airlines (HU, Haikou); one B737-8 ordered by Kunming Airlines (KY, Kunming Changshui); four B737-8s, three B737-10s, and five B787-9s ordered by Okay Airways (BK, Tianjin); two B737-7s, thirty-four B737-8s, and six B787-9s ordered by Ruili Airlines (DR, Kunming Changshui); one B737-8 ordered by Shandong Airlines (SC, Jinan); two B737-8s and three B787-9s ordered by Shanghai Airlines (FM, Shanghai Hongqiao); two B737-8s ordered by Shenzhen Airlines (ZH, Shenzhen); and seven B737-8s ordered by Xiamen Airlines (MF, Xiamen).
However, it is common for Chinese airlines to not disclose their orders until delivery.
At the time of publication, no other Chinese carriers have deferred aircraft deliveries because of the recent tariff hikes.
Boeing delivery forecasts expect China to account for around 20% of global aircraft demand over the next two to three decades. Before the pandemic, approximately 25% of Boeing's aircraft were built for Chinese customers. Since then, various factors, including production and delivery issues at Boeing and tensions between China and the US, have shifted that figure downwards. The recent tariff increases present Boeing with a further challenge.
