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Qatar has agreed to buy up to 210 aircraft from Boeing in what US President Donald Trump hailed as the largest order of jets in the history of the American company.
The White House said economic deals worth more than $243bn had been agreed with Qatar as Trump toured the oil-rich Gulf in pursuit of headline-grabbing investments.
Qatar Airways, the state-owned national carrier, had agreed to a $96bn deal to acquire up to 210 American-made Boeing 787 Dreamliner and 777X aircraft, the White House said, adding that it was Boeing’s “largest-ever wide-body order”. No timeframe was given for the order.
“Congratulations to Boeing. Get those planes out there,” Trump said at a signing ceremony with Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, Qatar’s emir. “I just want to thank you.”
Boeing shares were up 1.5 per cent by early afternoon in New York on Wednesday.
The announcement followed Trump’s visit to Riyadh on Tuesday, where he said Saudi Arabia had committed to investing $600bn through scores of deals in the defence, artificial intelligence, energy and other sectors. However, it was not clear over what timeframe the money would be invested as analysts cautioned that some of the deals might not materialise.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said more than $300bn had been signed at the forum, but that Riyadh was “working on partnership opportunities with the US worth $600bn”.
Trump’s three-state tour of the Gulf has been clouded by controversy over the president’s willingness to accept the “gift” of a $400mn jumbo jet from Qatar — one of the world’s richest nations and one of its biggest exporters of liquefied natural gas — to temporarily replace Air Force One.
The president has defended the offer of the luxury Boeing 747-8, saying it would go to the defence department. Doha has said it was inaccurate to describe the jet as a gift, adding that “the possible transfer of an aircraft” was still “under consideration”.
While meeting Sheikh Tamim on Tuesday, Trump lauded what he described as a “very loyal, great, beautiful friendship”.
“Now we can work together in the highest capacity,” he said.
The aircraft deal with Qatar will also include 400 GEnx and GE9X wide-body engines from GE Aerospace, which GE chief executive Larry Culp said was “our largest ever wide-body engine deal”.
Qatar was reportedly in talks with Boeing and Airbus about a major order a year ago. “These orders are typically baked for a long time, especially now, with supply chain disruptions,” said Addison Schonland, co-founder of aviation consultancy AirInsight Group.
Airlines routinely negotiate a discount off the list price of the aeroplanes they buy, meaning the final price paid will be lower than the $96bn list price. Boeing did not immediately specify how many of the aircraft had been ordered, and how many Qatar had secured an option to buy.
Other multibillion dollar deals were also sealed in Qatar on defence, energy and technology, the White House said.
Qatar has sought to strengthen its ties with the US by acting as an intermediary between Washington and the Taliban, as well as Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. Doha has acted as a mediator between Israel and Hamas after the Palestinian militant group’s October 7, 2023 attack triggered the war in Gaza.
Trump’s trip comes as Israel prepares to escalate its offensive against Hamas in Gaza after 19 months of war. Israeli strikes killed at least 70 people in the strip on Wednesday, according to Palestinian health officials.
Sheikh Tamim told Trump a “very important thing is bringing peace to the region”. The president did not mention Gaza in his public comments in Doha.
A diplomat briefed on the talks said negotiations between Israel and Hamas were ongoing as mediators sought to secure a short-term truce and the release of more Israeli hostages held in Gaza.
