[Paleo Conservative]

Well the Chinese just ordered 60 Boeing 787s. That should help the balance of payments some.

[Mad_Tom_Rackham]

Roger that. That's how trade is supposed to work. We have something they want, and they have something we want, and goods are exchanged accordingly. I have no problem with this.

[FactsMatter]

How easy would it be for China to convert those into long range patrol craft? If I am not mistaken Boeing already has plans to do that for the US Military using some verion of a 7?7.

[maui_hawaii]

Some.

You got any numbers, and over what time frame?

I think that was 60 over 10 years...I don't know.

They would have to buy something like 200 of them per year to level things out...

Its more complicated than that though...

[maui_hawaii]

Chinese officials are set to sign a preliminary agreement with Boeing today to buy 60 7E7s, the company's largest order to date of the new fuel-efficient jets.

The planes have a list price of $120 million each, making the China sale worth $7.2 billion, but such orders typically come with heavy discounts.

.....

In 2004, the United States' trade deficit reached a whopping $617 billion a year, of which China compiled the largest surplus at $162 billion.

At that rate they would have to buy 1,350 jets in order to make up the difference. In one year.

[stboz]

Don't count your chickens....

Watch for the Chinks to threaten to cancel if they don't get what they want somewhere else....bet it will have something to do with oil.