Trump tariffs: China returns new ‘expensive’ Boeing aircraft as 125% import duty prevails on all US imports

A Chinese airline named Xiamen Airlines returned a brand new Boeing 737 MAX aircraft to the United States due to high tariffs on all imports from the United States amid an escalating global trade war, reported the news agency Reuters on Monday, April 21. 

Boeing Co. is based in the United States and is one of the world's largest defence and passenger aircraft manufacturers. Boeing's supply to China is reportedly at a halt after US President Donald Trump and China went on a head-on tariff war, increasing the import tariffs to 125 per cent for all US goods into China, and 145 per cent for all Chinese goods into the US.

The news agency also cited a witness who confirmed that the Boeing 737 MAX, which was meant for Xiamen Airlines, landed at Boeing's Seattle airbase at 6.11 pm on Sunday. The aircraft was painted in the Chinese Airlines' livery, as per the report.

This jet was one of the several 737 Max aircraft which had been waiting at Boeing’s Zhoushan plant in China for the final work and delivery to the individual airlines. 

China's pause on Boeing

US President Donald Trump increased the baseline tariffs on the import of Chinese goods to 145 per cent, in retaliation for China, increasing their import duty on US products.

This head-to-head clash between the United States and China started on April 4, when Trump announced his ‘reciprocal tariffs’ on world nations. Later on April 4, China retaliated by imposing an additional 34 per cent tariffs on all US imports; this move tanked the stock markets worldwide, starting with the US markets.

In exchange for Trump's current 145 per cent tariffs, China has imposed 125 per cent tariffs on all US imports. This move is making the $55 million Boeing 737 Max aircraft more expensive than its retail price. 

As per the news agency's report, China is considering supporting domestic airlines which lease Boeing aircraft and are currently facing higher cost issues due to the prevailing tariff rates.

Last week, the Chinese government asked its domestic airlines to pause their purchases from the manufacturer Boeing for aircraft-related equipment. China reportedly holds nearly 20 per cent of the expected global demand for Boeing's aircraft in the next two decades, as per the news report.

The news portal also cited Boeing's order book, which had 130 aircraft which were scheduled to be delivered to Chinese airlines at the end of March 2025, for both commercial airlines and leasing operation firms, as per an Airways Mag report.

However, it was not clear which company, either Boeing or Xiamen, decided to return the aircraft to the United States. Boing did not immediately respond to the queries sent by the news agency.

(LiveMint couldn't independently verify the report.)