Boeing will resume aircraft deliveries to China next month, marking a breakthrough in the icy trade relationship between Washington and Beijing.

The move comes after months of stalled transactions that left the American aerospace giant shut out of its second-largest market. The restart also follows President Donald Trump’s announcement of a 90-day truce in the U.S.-China trade conflict earlier this month — a key development that appears to have paved the way for the return of Boeing jets to Chinese tarmacs.

CEO Kelly Ortberg confirmed the update on Thursday during a presentation at the Bernstein investor conference, saying China had now given the green light to resume deliveries after previously halting them amid heightened trade tensions.

“China has now indicated … they’re going to take deliveries,” Ortberg said. “The first deliveries will be next month.”

The renewed flow of Boeing jets into China highlights what could be a significant shift in U.S.-China commercial relations — one catalyzed by President Trump’s unexpected trade truce announcement on May 5. The 90-day pause in new tariffs and trade hostilities was framed by Trump as a window to “allow our teams to work on a more comprehensive agreement.”

The truce marked a rare cooling of rhetoric in a trade war that has spanned tariffs on billions of dollars worth of goods, export restrictions, and a near halt in cross-border industrial cooperation. For Boeing, which is often seen as a proxy for broader U.S. manufacturing and export health, the resumption is an early sign that the truce is already having commercial consequences.

Boeing has long depended on China’s booming aviation sector, fueled by a growing middle class and rapid domestic airport expansion, to drive long-term sales growth. But the company’s deliveries to Chinese airlines have slowed to a trickle in recent years, weighed down by regulatory uncertainty, pandemic disruptions, and a wider geopolitical chill.

Ortberg declined to comment on whether the resumed deliveries came with additional conditions or concessions but acknowledged that the development was “encouraging for everyone watching the U.S.-China dynamic.”

Boeing’s Strategic Stakes in China

China is not just a major buyer of Boeing aircraft — it is a critical linchpin in the company’s global business. The country is expected to account for nearly 20% of all global aircraft demand over the next two decades, according to Boeing’s own forecasts. Missing out on Chinese contracts leaves Boeing exposed to European rival Airbus, which has capitalized on the opening to deepen its footprint in the country.

Thursday’s announcement provides a shot in the arm to Boeing’s embattled commercial division, which has been trying to recover from a series of crises — including the two fatal 737 Max crashes and the more recent midair blowout of a door panel on an Alaska Airlines Max 9 jet. Those incidents invited waves of regulatory scrutiny and production restrictions, including a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) cap limiting output to 38 Max jets per month.

However, Ortberg said Boeing is aiming to ramp up production to 42 planes per month by midyear and will assess increasing that number to 47 by the end of 2025. The company is also targeting certification for its Max 7 and Max 10 models by year-end, which would restore its full narrow-body lineup for the first time in years.

Even with the resumed deliveries, Boeing continues to face tariff pressures. Ortberg noted that the company is still paying duties on some imported aircraft components, particularly from Japan and Italy, used in the production of wide-body Dreamliner jets. Those jets are primarily assembled in South Carolina.

He, however, pointed out that most of those duties can be recouped once the aircraft are exported.

“The only duties that we would have to cover would be the duties for a delivery, say, to a U.S. airline,” he said, downplaying any lasting financial impact for international orders.

He added that the current trade environment, while volatile, is unlikely to be permanent.

“I personally don’t think these [tariffs] will be permanent in the long term,” Ortberg said, expressing cautious optimism about a thaw in U.S. trade relations with its key partners.

Ortberg’s leadership, which began last August, has won cautious praise from major airline CEOs, who had grown increasingly frustrated with Boeing’s delayed deliveries during a period of surging post-pandemic travel demand. United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby, speaking on CNBC Thursday, said he believed Boeing “has turned the corner.”

“We over-ordered aircraft believing the supply chain would be challenged,” Kirby said, noting that global production remains under strain even as demand returns.

Airlines have welcomed the prospect of more predictable Boeing deliveries, especially as summer travel season approaches and capacity constraints loom.

Turning a Corner or Temporary Relief?

While the resumed deliveries to China are a clear win for Boeing, questions remain about whether this shift is a permanent reordering of the U.S.-China trade balance — or just a temporary reprieve under Trump’s 90-day truce.

China’s willingness to re-engage in commercial aviation may indicate a strategic pivot to secure essential industrial partnerships while avoiding further economic fallout. For Trump, allowing Boeing to restart deliveries gives his administration leverage to claim a trade win — even as structural issues in U.S.-China relations remain unresolved.

In the meantime, Boeing is capitalizing on the opportunity, using the breakthrough to reset its narrative. The company still faces a long road to recovery, burdened by regulatory hurdles, production constraints, and the lingering reputational scars of its past missteps.

In a rare and pointed criticism of President Donald Trump, Elon Musk has slammed the recently passed Republican spending bill, calling it a setback for efforts to reduce wasteful government expenditure.

The criticism, which aired in a preview of an upcoming interview on CBS Sunday Morning, marks one of Musk’s most direct and public rebukes of the man he has long backed—both ideologically and politically—even when Trump’s policies ran contrary to Musk’s business interests.

“I was, like, disappointed to see the massive spending bill, frankly, which increases the budget deficit, not just decrease it, and undermines the work that the DOGE team is doing,” Musk said, referring to the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), the federal cost-cutting agency he headed until recently.

The bill in question—the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act”—is projected by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) to raise the federal budget deficit by $3.8 trillion over the next ten years. That’s a sharp reversal from DOGE’s stated aim of fiscal prudence.

Since its creation in January 2025, DOGE has claimed to have saved $170 billion in taxpayer money by slashing bureaucratic redundancies and eliminating overlapping federal programs, including a controversial gutting of the U.S. Agency for International Development and job cuts affecting some 275,000 federal employees, according to data from consulting firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas.

Trump had boasted of the bill as a landmark legislative win, calling it “big and beautiful.” But Musk, in a dig at that framing, retorted, “I think a bill can be big or it can be beautiful, but I don’t know if it can be both.”

This stark divergence in rhetoric has sparked speculation of a growing schism between the billionaire industrialist and the Republican leader, especially as Musk announces the end of his role at the White House.

For years, Musk has been seen as a cheerleader for Trump, praising his deregulatory stance and frequently appearing at White House events. He continued to offer public support even when the Trump administration pursued policies that threatened Musk’s core businesses—particularly the electric vehicle sector, which faced headwinds from Trump’s fossil fuel-heavy energy agenda and the rollback of federal EV subsidies.

Trump’s support for oil drilling and traditional automakers has consistently undermined the clean energy transition championed by Tesla and other Musk ventures. Yet Musk, always calculating, maintained cordial relations with Trump, securing influence in key policy discussions and later accepting a high-profile advisory role as DOGE chief—a position that allowed him to shape federal spending but also put him directly in the political spotlight.

Now, Musk’s comments suggest a shift, with the SpaceX and Tesla CEO signaling that he is stepping back from his Washington role.

“It was clear that DOGE became the whipping boy for everything,” Musk told The Washington Post in a separate interview published Tuesday. “The federal bureaucracy is much worse than I realized.”

His withdrawal comes just as Trump’s bill heads to the Senate, where it faces stiff opposition—not only from Democrats but also from Republican fiscal conservatives. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, a former presidential hopeful and one-time Trump rival, has blasted House Republicans for failing to codify DOGE’s proposed spending cuts, calling it “a betrayal of the voters.”

The timing of Musk’s criticism is significant. Trump is known for his zero-tolerance approach to dissent, particularly from allies. His history of falling out with former aides, executives, and party loyalists is well-documented. From former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to Attorney General Jeff Sessions and one-time strategist Steve Bannon, Trump has often publicly castigated former allies after a perceived betrayal.

That history raises questions about whether Musk’s comments could escalate into a full-blown feud. Already, reports suggest tensions have been simmering behind the scenes.

Meanwhile, markets appeared to respond positively to Musk’s pivot. Tesla stock edged higher following the release of the CBS interview clip, buoyed by investor optimism that Musk would now be refocusing on the company after months of distraction from political affairs. His companies—including Tesla, X (formerly Twitter), and SpaceX—have faced mounting challenges amid regulatory pressure and competition, making his return to the helm a welcome development for shareholders.

However, the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” continues to divide Congress—and possibly one of its most high-profile corporate allies. If Musk’s past loyalty can no longer buffer him from Trump’s retaliation, the political fallout could reshape the calculus for other business leaders who’ve walked the tightrope of MAGA politics.