Tariffs could lift Boeing and Airbus plane prices even higher

NEW YORK

Commercial plane prices, already lifted in recent years due to pandemic supply chain shocks, are poised to climb further as Boeing and Airbus are buffeted by trade tariffs.

"Compared with 2018, prices for commercial jets have risen by around 30 percent," an aviation expert told AFP on condition of anonymity.

The American and European aerospace giants have grappled with higher expenses for primary materials such as titanium, components and energy.

Richard Aboulafia, managing director at consultancy AeroDynamic Advisory, said items that have inflated "at a particularly high rate" include castings, forgings and anything titanium.

Aboulafia estimates prices for materials and equipment have risen 40 percent since 2021.

That's before Trump's 25 percent tariffs on steel and aluminum, which are used in planes.

The impact of tariffs is not reflected in the companies' stale official pricing literature.

Boeing has not updated its figures since 2023, while Airbus' catalogue is untouched since 2018.

Airbus decided to abandon the use of catalogue prices "a long time ago" because they "were not closely correlated to the final price, which was based on each specific contract in terms of plane configuration and detail," the company said.

In February, Japanese carrier ANA ordered planes from Boeing, Airbus, providing updated catalogue prices that show an increase from earlier levels.

The order priced Boeing's 787 Dreamliner at around $386 million and the 737 MAX at $159 million, compared with $292 million and $121.6 million in 2023.

It priced the Airbus A321neo at around $148 million compared with the $129.5 million in the 2018 catalogue.