S&P removes Boeing’s rating from CreditWatch negative on improving aircraft production

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(Reuters) -S&P has removed Boeing’s rating from CreditWatch negative on improving aircraft production and lower cash burn, the global ratings agency said on Monday.

The U.S. planemaker’s rating was placed on CreditWatch negative after about 33,000 of its workers went on a strike, which halted production of its best-selling jets. A CreditWatch listing reflects the increased likelihood of a downgrade

S&P said on Monday that Boeing appears to be on track to recover from the 2024 strike-driven production halt and persistent manufacturing quality problems.

Earlier this month, Boeing reported that free cash flow usage, a metric closely watched by investors, improved during the first quarter to negative $2.3 billion, compared with expectations of negative $3.6 billion.

Boeing had said it wants to roughly double output of its top-selling 737 MAX plane from its January level to a regulator-capped 38 per month by the end of this year.

“We estimate that Boeing has increasing capacity to absorb unexpected headwinds risks to sustainably higher production and to near-term aircraft deliveries, including those posed by tariffs and counter-tariffs with the U.S. and its trading partners,” the ratings agency said.

However, S&P reaffirmed its rating of a negative outlook “to reflect the potential for a slowing recovery in aircraft production and deliveries, which could lead to delayed recovery of its cash flow and credit ratios to levels we view as consistent with the rating.”

(Reporting by Tanay Dhumal in Bengaluru; Editing by Tasim Zahid)