China magic

I just spent the past couple of weeks in China. Annually, we present our new China market 20 year forecast and product strategy overview. This year my colleague John Bates accompanied me to give the detailed product briefings.
We visited Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou, and finished up at the air show in Zhuhai.
Our visit started with a media briefing in Shanghai to present the 2006 Current Market Outlook (CMO). The event opened with presentations by me, followed by Bates, who is our regional director of product marketing. It ended with a spirited media Q & A session.
http://www.boeing.com/randy/images/CMO_Shanghai8_sm.jpgHere I am presenting the CMO, while off-camera, Adele Long, our Boeing interpreter, translates for the Chinese media.

We had a great turnout, with 40 journalists attending the event - including the Xinhua News Agency, and the China News Agency, as well as the China Daily, and Shanghai Online. There was a lot of interest in Boeing's outlook and product strategy, especially in what we see for China and the Asia-Pacific region.
During the Q&A session, questions focused on our commitment to the Chinese market, and on orders from Chinese airlines. We also got some questions about the delivery schedule for the 787 Dreamliner, and on technology transfer. Afterwards, Boeing executives and media representatives enjoyed a luncheon together.
http://www.boeing.com/randy/images/CMO_Shanghai3_sm.jpgAll of the CMO slides were in Chinese. And since John Bates (pictured here) and I do not read Chinese, we had to basically memorize the charts before the presentation.

I think it's important to present our CMO in this way each year because Chinese journalists regard this outlook as a highly informative and authoritative industry analysis. But on top of that, I think this event enhanced and promoted Boeing's leadership position in the aviation industry and demonstrated Boeing's knowledge of the market.
Concluding our China visit, we had the opportunity to attend the 6th China International Aviation & Aerospace Exhibition - also known as Airshow China - in Zhuhai. At the show we featured our popular traveling mockup of the 787 interior. And we talked a lot about our complete product line - from the best-selling Next-Generation 737, to the 787, 777, and 747-8 families.
http://www.boeing.com/randy/images/C...r_china_sm.gif
We hosted another CMO and product briefing at Airshow China's press center, starting with our projection that China's airline operators are going to spend $280 billion to purchase almost 2,900 new airplanes over the next 20 years.
Since 1990, the number of flights in China has increased by 13 times and will continue to grow at a very rapid rate.
China is the world's fastest-growing airplane market and by 2025, it will be the world's second biggest civil airplane market after the U.S. - with a 7.4% average annual overall growth rate for China's markets and a 8.8% average annual growth rate for domestic travel in China.
http://www.boeing.com/randy/images/C...etshare_sm.gif
With the rapidly expanding travel and cargo markets there, we think the number of airplanes in China will more than triple to 3,900 in 2025.
It's interesting to note that I first visited China in 1984, when I spent a week in Beijing. More than 20 years later, it is absolutely mind-boggling to see the changes due to rapid economic growth China is experiencing and will continue to experience.
It is a magical place that I will always enjoy visiting.


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