Saudi Arabia wealth fund to order 30 Boeing jets, Bloomberg News reports
May 13 (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund plans to order 30 Boeing (BA.N), opens new tab 737 MAX jets, Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter.
The Public Investment Fund (PIF) was set to buy the jets for aircraft leasing company AviLease, according to the report. The Riyadh-based firm has 200 owned and managed aircraft and leases to 48 airlines globally.
Boeing and AviLease did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment. PIF could not be immediately reached for comment.
Earlier in the day, Boeing official Michael Strosnider told Saudi state TV that the U.S. planemaker had been looking at bringing Saudi Arabia into the global supply chain for the F-15EX fighter jet.
Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg is among corporate leaders accompanying U.S. President Donald Trump on his Middle East Tour, beginning with Saudi Arabia on Tuesday.
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Telegraph
40 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Musk deletes Epstein tweet after Trump fallout
Elon Musk has deleted a tweet in which he alleged that Donald Trump was 'in the Epstein files'. The social media post was written on Thursday amid a fierce war of words between the tech billionaire and the US president – marking an abrupt end to their close alliance – following a dispute over Mr Trump's flagship spending Bill. As the disagreement escalated, Mr Musk also suggested that his former boss should be removed from office. 'The Epstein files' is a phrase colloquially used to describe intelligence US authorities hold on Jeffrey Epstein, the disgraced paedophile, who died in 2019. 'Time to drop the really big bomb: Donald Trump is in the Epstein files. That is the real reason they have not been made public,' Mr Musk wrote, before adding: 'Have a nice day, DJT!' However, by Saturday morning, Mr Musk deleted his post on X, in a sign that the pair's row could now be winding down. Mr Trump also appeared to suggest he was moving on from the spat, telling reporters during a flight to New Jersey: 'Honestly I've been so busy working on China, working on Russia, working on Iran... I'm not thinking about Elon Musk, I just wish him well.' The row began when Mr Musk – who last week stepped down as head of the Department of Government Efficiency – criticised the president's upcoming Bill as a 'disgusting abomination' and claimed it would increase the national debt. Mr Trump retaliated by saying the billionaire was upset because one of his allies had not been chosen for a role in the new Nasa administration. The president also suggested Mr Musk was annoyed because the White House's 'big beautiful Bill' would end tax breaks for electric vehicles worth billions of dollars to his car company Tesla. 'He knew it better than almost anybody, and he never had a problem until right after he left,' Mr Trump said. The president later said, during an Oval Office meeting with Friedrich Merz, the German chancellor, that Mr Musk had 'Trump derangement syndrome'. The Republican later added that he was 'very disappointed' in the entrepreneur. However, Mr Musk was quick to hit back, alleging that the president had only won last year's election because of his support. 'Without me, Trump would have lost the election. Dems would control the House and the Republicans would be 51-49 in the Senate... Such ingratitude,' he wrote on X. The world's richest man then published his post about the president and the Epstein files – but provided no evidence to back up his claim. Social circles Mr Trump and Epstein ran in the same social circles in New York and were pictured partying together on various occasions in the 1980s and 1990s. Epstein killed himself in 2019 in a Manhattan jail cell while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. In February, Pam Bondi, the US attorney general, pledged to release the Epstein files. However, the 'phase one' documents that were released – to a hand-picked group of conservative influencers – contained information that was largely already in the public domain. As the row escalated, Mr Musk said he would decommission his Dragon spacecraft, which is used by Nasa to deliver and collect astronauts from the International Space Station. Mr Trump in turn threatened to cancel all of the Tesla and SpaceX owner's government contracts. 'The easiest way to save money in our budget, billions and billions of dollars, is to terminate Elon's governmental subsidies and contracts,' he said. The president also reportedly considered selling or giving away the red Tesla car he purchased earlier this year. Tesla shares tanked as the rift intensified, amid investor fears that Mr Trump might hinder the roll-out of self-driving cars in the US, hitting the company's growth potential. Shares closed down 14.3 per cent on Thursday and lost about £111 billion, although the firm staged a partial recovery on Friday. An administration official claimed Mr Musk was 'clearly having an episode', while Steve Bannon, Mr Trump's former adviser, encouraged the president to initiate a formal investigation into Mr Musk's immigration status and have him 'deported from the country immediately'. As well as deleting the Epstein post, Mr Musk also appeared to walk back on his threat to decommission the Dragon spacecraft. When an X user suggested Mr Musk and Mr Trump 'take a step back for a couple days', the Tesla chief executive wrote: 'Good advice. Ok, we won't decommission Dragon.' However, the billionaire has continued to keep a poll pinned to the top of his X profile which invites users of the social media platform to vote on whether it is time for a new political party in the US. Mr Musk wrote on Friday night: 'The people have spoken. A new political party is needed in America to represent the 80 per cent in the middle! This is fate.'
The Independent
an hour ago
- The Independent
What it would take to convert a jet from Qatar into Air Force One to safely fly Trump
President Donald Trump really wants to fly on an upgraded Air Force One — but making that happen could depend on whether he's willing to cut corners with security. As government lawyers sort out the legal arrangement for accepting a luxury jet from the Qatari royal family, another crucial conversation is unfolding about modifying the plane so it's safe for the American president. Installing capabilities equivalent to the decades-old 747s now used as Air Force One would almost certainly consign the project to a similar fate as Boeing 's replacement initiative, which has been plagued by delays and cost overruns. Air Force Secretary Troy Meink told lawmakers Thursday that those security modifications would cost less than $400 million but provided no details. Satisfying Trump's desire to use the new plane before the end of his term could require leaving out some of those precautions, however. A White House official said Trump wants the Qatari jet ready as soon as possible while adhering to security standards. The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, did not provide details on equipment issues or the timeline. Trump has survived two assassination attempts, and Iran allegedly also plotted to kill him, so he's well aware of the danger he faces. However, he seems willing to take some chances with security, particularly when it comes to communications. For example, he likes to keep his personal phone handy despite the threat of hacks. He boasted this week that the government got the jet 'for free,' saying, 'We need it as Air Force One until the other ones are done.' Here's a look at what it would take to make the Qatari plane into a presidential transport: What makes a plane worthy of being Air Force One? Air Force One is the call sign for any plane that's carrying the president. 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Daily Mail
2 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Tesla shares rebound slightly after $150bn wipe-out triggered by Musk's spat with Trump
Tesla shares were sent into freefall on Thursday after Elon Musk sounded off about Donald Trump and his policies on social media this week. The debacle saw roughly $150billion wiped from Tesla's market value in one of the worst days in months. While the electric car maker's share price tumbled 14 per cent on Thursday, it rebounded slightly on Friday following some indications tempers were cooling between the duo. Earlier this week, Trump threatened to cut off government contracts to Musk's businesses, including rocket firm SpaceX, which has contracts worth tens of billions of dollars with the US government. In response, Musk fired back and said: 'Go ahead, make my day.' The saga seemed to quieten somewhat on Friday as Musk broke his silence by agreeing with an X post that claimed he never attacked Trump personally. The initial feud was ignited over Musk's opposition to Trump's 'Big Beautiful Bill', before he launched into a series of attacks on the president and alleged he was 'in the Epstein files. Trump quickly branded Musk 'crazy' and said he has 'lost his mind'. The president also moved to sell his Tesla that he bought from Musk when their relationship was rosier in March, in a parting insult after saying he ousted Musk from his White House. US subsidies and contracts at Federal and state level are worth billions to Tesla, which also currently benefits from a $7,500 tax credit available for electric vehicle purchases. Tesla shares closed at $295.14 this week, down around 14 per cent on less than a week ago and down nearly a quarter on where they were six months ago. But the shares are still around 66 higher than they were a year ago. Tesla shares rose more than 60 per cent between the start of November when Trump was elected to the end of 2024. But investor pressure over Musk's controversial role in the White House ultimately led to him to stepping down from his unofficial 'DOGE' department, which had sparked protests and vandalism directed at Tesla. Tesla shares were on a run more recently, however, after Musk confirmed the group would be testing an autonomous, driverless 'robotaxi' service in Austin, Texas, this month. Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said this week: 'Tesla shareholders are stuck in the middle of the battle zone as whatever happens to Musk will act as a proxy for the car company's share price. 'Trump has signalled he could terminate US government contracts with Musk's companies, causing Tesla's share price to crash 14 per cent in a day.' He added: 'Musk's outspokenness is becoming a liability for Tesla shareholders. 'He recently pledged to stay on as CEO for at least another five years, but if he cannot be restrained from stoking fires on the public stage, Tesla's board might have to think long and hard about his future with the business.' Neil Wilson, UK investor strategist at Saxo Markets, said on Friday: 'I spoke almost a year ago to Mark Spiegel of Stanphyl Capital in New York. 'He said it was just a matter of time before Musk and Trump fell out – the only question was who would shaft who first but his view was that sooner or later everyone "gets Musked". 'An ugly, name-calling, chest-thumping public brawl on Twitter between the richest guy in the world and the most powerful guy in the world – it's what the platform was made for. 'It's also whacked Tesla stock as bulls need to reassess their upside case for the carmaker. 'Both probably realise that this is doing each of them a lot of harm – Musk could lose billions of dollars in government contracts and tax credits, while Trump could see his 'big beautiful bill' fail to pass.'
