(18 Dec 2019) Boeing Co. will temporarily stop producing its grounded 737 Max jet starting in January as it struggles to get approval from regulators to put the plane back in the air. The company says it will halt production at its plant with 12,000 employees in Renton, Washington, near Seattle. It says, however, it doesn't immediately expect any layoffs as a result of the production halt. But layoffs could ripple through some of the 900 companies that supply parts for the plane.
The move is concerning to Boeing employees at the Renton plant, who may be assigned to different Boeing facilities in the Seattle area.
The closing of the Renton assembly line may also hurt local business. Sandwich shop owner Kiet Lei says most of his business comes from Boeing.
"Mostly they order for a whole group of people, you know, faxing a big order and they send somebody to pick up the order," he said.
The Max has been grounded since March after two deadly crashes.
The 737 Max is such a big product that by itself, the production hiatus will shrink the U.S. gross domestic product by around 0.5% in the first three months of 2020, predicted JP Morgan Economist Michael Feroli.
That could cut the U.S. economy's growth rate by a roughly a quarter, to 1.5%.
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