Aerospace leader Boeing (BA 0.56%) announced earlier today that the company will continue to increase production rates, claiming that high demand and a strong backlog justify ramping up manufacturing even in the face of the company's ongoing fiasco regarding the 787 Dreamliner's grounding.
Boeing's sturdy 737 program is currently raising production to 38 planes per month, part of a move that will ramp up to 42 aircraft per month by early next year. The 777 aircraft and 787 will also see production increases throughout 2013.
Ray Tinseth, Boeing Commercial Airplanes' vice president of marketing, elaborated on the decision while speaking at the International Society of Transport Aircraft Trading Americas conference. "The data tells us the market is strong and will continue to be strong," he said. "That's why we're confident as we raise our production rates. ... Supply and demand will continue to be in balance as we put more airplanes into the hands of our customers."
Boeing shares jumped 1.8% on the comments along with Boeing's confidence in a permanent fix for the 787's battery problems that resulted in the grounding of the company's flagship aircraft.
