China is now Boeing company's largest foreign supplier of parts,
with US$2.5 billion of live contracts for aircraft products, a
senior Boeing official said?in Hong Kong?on Thursday.
John Burns, vice president China operations of Boeing, said at
the Asian Aerospace International Expo and Congress held Monday
through Thursday that China is an "exciting proposition", and
offers greater opportunity for OEMs than "just selling
airplanes".
"Liberalization is creating a more competitive environment and
airline strategies are assisting with this growth by responding to
the customer's desire to save time by flying point-to-point," he
said at the congress.
China will need more than 2,900 new aircraft to satisfy the
growth of the industry, Burns said, adding this will inevitably
lead to more investment on the Chinese mainland.
According to Burns, Boeing currently has 170 direct Boeing
employees in China and 3,000 people working in Boeing joint
ventures.
"China now has a role in all current Boeing models," he
added.
The Asian Aerospace International Expo and Congress 2007 closed
on Thursday in Hong Kong. It is the first time the Expo moves its
venue from Singapore to Hong Kong.
(Xinhua News Agency September 7, 2007)
