Boeing's (NYSE:BA) 200 Chinese Aircraft Order Part of Backlog

While it's good news for Boeing (NYSE:BA) that they received final approval for an order of 200 planes from China, it's already part of their backlog, and isn't a batch of new orders.

Canaccord says, "Boeing announced final approval of a $19-billion agreement to send 200 aircraft to China during the Chinese President Hu Jintao’s visit to the U.S. The air craft manufacturer will send 185 narrow-body 737s ($15 billion) and 15 wide-body 777s ($5 billion) to China between 2011 and 2013. However, reports indicate that the planes included in this deal are already part of Boeing’s backlog, as opposed to fresh orders. Boeing currently represents over 50% of commercial jetliners operating in China, and according to the company’s projections, China will need an additional 4,330 new airplanes over the next 20 years. Interestingly, this announcement comes a week after rival Airbus announced a $15.6-billion order to send 180 planes to India and two days after it was announced Airbus had more annual orders than Boeing for a third straight year. Note, this $19-billion deal was part of $45 billion worth of export deals announced during Hu’s historic meeting with President Barack Obama. U.S. officials believe the agreement will positively impact over 100,000 jobs."

Boeing was trading at $71.08, down $0.65, or 0.91 percent, as of 1:44 PM EST.