As the aircraft manufacturer struggles with a lack of American imports into the important aviation market, Boeing (BA.N) named Alvin Liu head of its China branch on Wednesday. Liu is a Chinese-born representative who was recently hired by the auto industry.
There are currently senior executives in China who were born in both Boeing and Airbus SE (AIR.PA).
About a quarter of all airplanes are imported from China, and because of trade and geopolitical concerns with Washington, China’s business relations with Boeing have suffered.
Following tragic incidents, it was the first nation to put Boeing’s 737 MAX on the shelf. Although the current planes have now been put back in service, China has been sluggish to restart imports, and political unrest has also affected more general jet purchases and imports.
According to Boeing, Liu is a native of the northeastern Chinese province of Liaoning. The business said he had been in charge of its government operations team in China but did not specify his age or nationality.
In the next 20 years, China will require 8,500 new aircraft and $550 billion in commercial services, according to Boeing.
According to Liu’s statement in the press release, “I am committed to making sure our team is prepared to support our customers and meet that demand.”
He succeeds Boeing veteran Sherry Carbary, who resigned as president of the China division in July and has been replaced in that role by Liu, who has held the position on an interim basis ever since.
Liu joined the business in 2022 after working for Ford and Chrysler in China in the auto industry.
His hiring comes at a difficult moment for Boeing due to geopolitical concerns between the two biggest economies in the world.
Additionally, it has fallen behind arch-rival Airbus (AIR.PA), which just revealed plans for a second aircraft production facility in Tianjin.
Liu is the greatest candidate for Boeing as it strives to rebuild strong ties, according to independent aviation industry analyst Li Hanming, in part because he is physically in China.
Sending senior executives from abroad and obtaining working visas are both exceedingly challenging, according to Li. According to experts, since the outbreak, the processing of visa applications has slowed.
Additionally, over the past three years, Liu worked hard with the civil aviation authorities, and the fact that the 737 MAX is nearly fully operational again is evidence that he did a good job.
As of the end of June, according to the manufacturer, 90% of its MAX jets in China were back in service after the country grounded the model as a result of two fatal incidents in 2018–19.
He will officially take over as Boeing China President on September 1 and be based in Beijing, the firm announced.
