The Chicago Journal

Boeing reveals plans for 737 Max production

Boeing Boeing just announced its first-quarter financial report, and the results produced had varied responses.

While the company’s revenue exceeded expectations, profits lagged.

Furthermore, despite production issues, Boeing announced plans to increase the output of its 737 Max planes.

The company

Boeing is a global firm based in the United States that designs, manufactures, and sells aircraft, helicopters, rockets, satellites, and missiles all over the world.

It is one of the largest aerospace businesses in the world, with headquarters in Chicago, Illinois.

Boeing manufactures both commercial and military aircraft, such as the well-known 737, 747, and 787 types.

Demand, supply chain interruptions, and production efficiency are all factors that impact its manufacturing speed.

In recent years, Boeing has suffered a number of setbacks, including the grounding of its 737 MAX series jets, which has reduced its manufacturing pace and financial performance.

Output

Boeing said on Wednesday that it intends to boost 737 Max production from 31 to 38 planes by 2023.

Given the ongoing production problems with certain planes, the comment was unexpected.

Boeing needs to send jets to airlines as quickly as possible, therefore the production pace for the best-selling planes will be the quickest in years.

Airlines are hoping to profit from a revival in air travel.

Furthermore, Boeing anticipates deploying 400 to 450 737 planes in 2023.

“This is an important year for us,” Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun told staff in a memo on Wednesday.

“As demand surges across our markets, we must focus together on execution and meeting our customer commitments.”

Boeing also plans to increase 787 Dreamliner manufacturing from three planes today to five planes one month later in 2023.

Shares and revenue

Boeing announced quarterly revenues of $17.92 billion, a 28% increase over 2022 and a $2 billion increase above projections of $17.43 billion.

According to the company, demand for their aircraft has surged.

Meanwhile, Boeing’s adjusted EPS loss for the quarter ($1.27) was higher than the $0.97 predicted by Wall Street.

“We delivered a solid first quarter and are focused on driving stability for our customers,” said Calhoun.

“We are progressing through recent supply chain disruptions but remain confident in the goals we set for this year, as well as for the longer term.”

“Demand is strong across our key markets and we are growing investments to advance our development programs and innovate strategic capabilities for our customers and for our future.”

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Guidance

For 2023, the business reiterated its previous expectation of $4.5 billion to $6.5 billion in operational cash flow and $4 to $5 billion in free cash flow.

Boeing also confirmed its previous 737 Max prediction of 400 to 450 deliveries in 2023.

The data was released following a manufacturing setback with the 737 Max in mid-April, when the firm warned that a problem with fuselage brackets may cause deliveries to be delayed.

“We will work diligently through rework of affected airplanes in production and storage to ensure each meets our standards of prior delivery,” said Calhoun.

“This effort will impact the timing of deliveries over the next several months.”

Production and delivery

Dave Calhoun indicated that the problem would cause a two-week delay in manufacturing.

According to the company’s website, Boeing now has a backlog of 4,219 737 planes.

In February, Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner encountered a delivery delay, causing the firm to halt deliveries owing to a fuselage component failure.

When the company addressed the FAA’s concerns about the Dreamliner’s front pressure bulkhead in early March, the problem was resolved.

The 787 Dreamliner program, according to the business, is presently manufacturing three planes per month, with plans to increase production to five later in 2023.

They also intend to raise it to ten every month by 2025/2026.

New deals

Boeing signed an agreement with Saudi Arabia in March.

Saudi Arabian Airlines and a new business called Riyadh Air made an order with the company for about 121 787s.

A total of 78 planes are considered definite orders, with an additional 43 planes for sale.

Riyadh Air was the recipient of 72 of the 121 orders placed.

The transaction is expected to be worth $40 billion.

“It is significant,” said Calhoun.

Prices of 2022: the highs and lows

Prices: The United States experienced its highest level of inflation last year.

The Federal Reserve has been battling inflation throughout 2022 and has used all available options, including hiking interest rates.

Price hikes

Recent data on inflation from the Bureau of Labor Statistics show a decline in price rises to 7.1%.

Retail prices increased 7.6% (inflation unadjusted) between November 1 and December 24, making it impossible for customers to purchase gifts without going over budget.

The information was provided by the Mastercard Spending Pulse, which looks at retail purchases beyond auto sales.

The cost of holiday meals skyrocketed throughout 2022 as food prices increased faster than inflation.

Some products had remarkable double-digit growth, but others experienced no change or a drop.

Electronics

As soon as the demand for expensive electronics fell, retailers noticed a change in consumer behavior.

Prices for major electronics decreased throughout the year that ended in November.

  • Smartphones plunged 23.4%
  • TV prices dropped 17%
  • Computers rolled back prices by 4.4%
  • Major appliances fell by 1%

Several businesses, like Best Buy and Walmart, stocked up at the beginning of 2022 in preparation for supply chain problems and anticipated rises in consumer demand.

Their plans, however, were derailed by mounting prices and declining client confidence.

In addition, during the early stages of the epidemic, when people were confined, they made significant purchases or upgrades.

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Apparel & toys

Although slowly, apparel prices rose last year.

  • Clothing prices rose by 3.6%
  • Footwear increased by 2.3%
  • Sporting goods climbed 2.7%
  • Toys had a meager 0.6% increase

The items were a bargain despite the slight price increase because inflation surpassed it.

In December, Walmart CEO Doug McMillon made the following remarks:

“In toys, sporting goods, categories like that, prices have come down more aggressively.”

“We’re still inflated, but we’re not inflated nearly as much as we are in the other categories.”

However, because retailers overestimated client demand, there was a stockpile of extra goods.

Stores made offers to move inventory, enticing customers to make purchases.

Retailers were able to control prices as a result.

Plane tickets

The 2020 pandemic prompted air travel demand to decline, dropping to an all-time low.

However, it was revived last year.

However, the cost of travel increased by 36% yearly.

Glen Hauenstein, the president of Delta, described the increase as “unprecedented” in March.

“I have never seen… demand turn on so quickly as it has over Omicron,” said Hauenstein.

Airlines made a record amount of money in April, May, and June due to high airfares and congested flights.

Two years after the pandemic-induced lockdowns, they made a full-force comeback owing to travelers.

Gas prices

The cost of land travel increased.

The price of gasoline increased by 10.1%; however, it has since fallen from its record highs.

Gas price volatility was caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine and geopolitical plans that depended on the availability of oil.

GasBuddy predicts the chances of the national average returning to the $4 per gallon price level could occur as early as May.

The fuel price tracking app GasBuddy does not anticipate another year of extreme volatility.

Read also: Minimum wage to go from $7 to $15 this year

Food prices

Food prices increased by 10.6% in 2022, which is more than overall inflation.

Numerous factors contributed to price increases for particular supermarket items through November 2022.

Egg prices rose by 49.1% as a result of the terrible avian influenza, a lack of supplies, and excessive demand.

Margarine prices increased by 47.4% due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

In addition, butter prices increased by 27% as the world’s milk supply plummeted.

Flour is an additional casualty of the Ukrainian situation.

The price of flour increased by 24.9% as a result of the disruption of the global grain market and high US transportation expenses.

In California, lettuce prices jumped by 19.8% as a result of crop disease.

Food prices increased by 12% over that period.

As the cost of eating out increased in 2022, many customers chose to accept higher prices as an alternative.

The price of dining out increased by 8.5% last year as restaurants raised menu prices to offset their rising material expenses.

Reference:

What got really expensive this year, and what got cheaper