A registration document from China Eastern Airlines filed with the Shanghai Stock Exchange, the European aircraft manufacturer has received an order from the airline for 101 A320neo family aircraft.
At list price, the contract is worth nearly $16 billion, but discounts are traditionally very significant. The aircraft are expected to be delivered in batches between 2028 and 2032.
China Eastern said the aircraft were largely discounted.
"Following multiple rounds of commercial negotiations, the actual price of the aircraft transaction reached through negotiations between the Company and Airbus was significantly lower than the standard list price," the statement said. The transaction is not effective until "approval by the relevant national departments," it added.
The 101 planes from the A320neo series also include the models A321neo and A321XLR, the company said, in a deal totaling approximately US$15.802 billion," the airline said.
"The specific delivery schedule may be adjusted based on actual circumstances, subject to mutual agreement between both parties," the statement said.
Last February , German Chancellor Friedrich Merz let the cat out of the bag by announcing from Beijing that China would order "up to 120" aircraft from the manufacturer.
This will consolidate Airbus's position in China, where booming airlines are eager for new aircraft. The European group now holds a majority stake in China, a market where it controls 50% of the market share, a far cry from the 10% it held in the 1990s.
Airbus is fully capitalizing on its industrial presence in China: its Tianjin site boasts a complete assembly line, enabling faster and simpler delivery of its flagship aircraft, which has become the world's best-selling.
Airbus is also benefiting from Boeing's setbacks in China, as the Chinese government uses the aerospace industry as a geopolitical weapon, which explains the lack of large-scale orders since 2017, amidst heightened trade tensions. But thanks to, or perhaps because of, Donald Trump's trade policies, the outlook is brightening for the American giant.
China Eastern said it signed the deal with Airbus, Europe's largest aerospace company, in Shanghai. The airline said its purchase was
"driven by belief in the future of (China's) civil aviation industry." "The company needs to plan for and reserve fleet capacity," it added.
In another development, according to sources, Boeing is negotiating an order for up to 500 737 MAX aircraft with Chinese carriers, an order that would be announced when the US president travels to Beijing for his first state visit to China since 2017. However the deal was still being negotiated and that several sticking points had not yet been resolved. Boeing declined to comment.
Worth mentioning here, at the end of last year, Air China, Shanghai-based Juneyao Airlines and Spring Airlines, as well as Hong Kong-listed China Aircraft Leasing Group Holdings (CALC) announced purchases totaling ound 150 jets.
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