Boeing 1st-quarter orders rose, leads Airbus
NEW YORK, April 5 (Reuters) - Boeing Co. (BA.N) took in 119 commercial plane orders in March, worth more than $18 billion at list prices, up slightly from 112 in the same month a year ago, helped by strong sales of its widebody jets, according to its latest figures released on Thursday.
The U.S. planemaker continues to lead the lucrative market for larger planes -- helped by its immensely popular 787 "Dreamliner" -- and is edging ahead of European rival Airbus in overall sales this year.
Boeing racked up 189 plane orders for the first three months of the year, compared with 176 for the same period last year, which turned out to be its all-time record year for sales, ending with a total of 1,044 net orders.
According to early reports from Airbus -- which may yet be revised -- it took 37 orders in March, bringing its first-quarter total to 134.
The European planemaker, owned by aerospace conglomerate EADS (EAD.PA), still has the edge in deliveries, as it flew 115 planes to customers in the first three months of the year, compared with 106 for Boeing.
Earlier this week, Boeing said it had passed the 500 mark for orders of its carbon composite 787, which is set to enter service next year. It now has 514 orders for the plane, making it Boeing's most successful launch on record.
(Additional reporting by Tim Hepher in Paris)
((Reporting by Bill Rigby, editing by Steve Orlofsky; Reuters Messaging: bill.rigby.reuters.com@reuters.net; +1 646 223 6122)) Keywords: BOEING ORDERS/MARCH
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