Boeing's European suppliers fall as U.S. planemaker's crisis deepens

Reuters

Published Dec 17, 2019 09:08

Boeing's European suppliers fall as U.S. planemaker's crisis deepens

(Reuters) - Shares in Boeing Co's (N:BA) biggest European suppliers, Senior Plc (L:SNR) and Safran (PA:SAF), fell sharply on Tuesday after the U.S. planemaker said it would suspend production of its best-selling 737 MAX jetliner in January, deepening its crisis.

Boeing said on Monday it would temporarily stop producing the jets in January, its biggest assembly-line halt in more than 20 years, as fallout from two fatal crashes of the now-grounded aircraft drags into 2020.

At 0844 GMT, Safran shares in Paris were down 3.6% at their lowest since early September.

With General Electric (N:GE), the French company produces engines for the 737 MAX and unlike most suppliers is paid mostly once the airplanes are delivered to the airline buyer.

Shares in Senior, which makes parts including airframes and engine build-up tubes for the jets, were down 7.4% at the bottom of London's FTSE 250 (FTMC) index. Its aerospace unit counts Boeing as its biggest customer.

"This is clearly not a helpful development for Senior, and although the group has reduced its exposure to the platform in the last few months and this is a temporary pause, the 737MAX remains an important platform," said Jefferies analyst Andy Douglas.

Airbus shares were up 1.6% in early trading.