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Deal clears path to delivering 120 previously ordered jets

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China keeps Airbus waiting for potential new order for 500

jets

By Tim Hepher and Sophie Yu

PARIS, Dec 9 (Reuters) - Airbus has secured

Chinese agreement to go ahead with the delivery of 120

previously ordered jets, the company said, but the deal signed

in Beijing leaves the European planemaker still waiting for

progress on a new order for hundreds of jets.

French President Emmanuel Macron visited China last week for

talks that covered geopolitics and trade but excluded any

mention of 500 plane orders that Airbus has been discussing for

over a year - a type of package often tied to state visits.

French media reported on Monday that Airbus had won a deal

that could lead to 120 new orders in future. Airbus, however,

said the so-called general terms of agreement (GTA) deal was

merely a step towards completing orders already on its books.

"This GTA agreement authorises the delivery of aircraft

already counted in our order book, which is standard procedure

with Chinese customers," an Airbus spokesperson said.

China's state buying agency did not respond to a request for

comment.

Both Airbus and Boeing ( BA ) are waiting for progress on

large anticipated aircraft orders from China, which has held off

placing major politically sensitive orders for several years.

Airbus has been in on-off negotiations since at least 2024

to try to secure an order for 500 jets, though China typically

moves cautiously on big purchases during periods of geopolitical

uncertainty, industry sources said in April.

Airbus has been banking on a breakthrough to catch up with

its U.S. rival in this year's order race and meet an internal

order target of about 1,200 aircraft, industry sources have

said.

However, barring a surprise shift, industry sources say

there are few signs that either of the world's big planemakers

will clinch major set-piece orders from Beijing this year.

Airbus posted 700 net orders after cancellations in the

first 11 months of the year, compared with 782 for Boeing ( BA ) by

end-October, the latest period for which Boeing ( BA ) data is

available.

Airbus is expected to outpace Boeing ( BA ) on deliveries for a

seventh straight year even after lowering forecasts last week

due to an industrial snag affecting some fuselage panels.

Earlier on Tuesday, the head of the global airlines body

IATA said in Geneva that there was less confidence in Airbus

meeting aircraft delivery targets, while Boeing's ( BA ) performance

had improved, amid ongoing supply-chain issues.