China to purchase 200 Boeing aircraft

The government of China government has placed an order for 200 Boeing planes, according to senior U.S. government officials, as part of a $45-billion export deal with China.

The official said China’s order will create 235,000 jobs in the U.S.

The transaction comes amidst an official state visit to Washington D.C. by the President of China, Hu Jintao.
The Boeing portion of the agreement is valued at about $19-billion.

Jim McNerney, Boeing’s chief executive, was among the American business executives who attended a meeting at the White House today with Hu and President Barack Obama.

Other top executives in attendance included Steve Ballmer of Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT), Lloyd Blankfein of Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) and Jeff Immelt of General Electric (NYSE: GE).

The Chinese order comes after Boeing said it was forced to again delay the release of its much-anticipated Dreamliner plane by another six months.