BOEING AND AIRBUS MAY REPORT - Airbus gaining speed but plagued with problems

Airbus (EADSY) deliveries are down this year as Boeing (BA) is gaining speed.

Airbus delivered 177 planes from January to April behind Boeing’s 230 deliveries. Airbus has seen slow deliveries of its new A320neo and A350 aircraft.

Boeing shares climbed 2.1% to 134.91 in the stock market, moving aback above its 200-day moving average. Airbus shares were up 2.1% to 15.75.

The A320neos — which adds an acronym at the end of its name to denote a “new engine option” — have been plagued with problems on those very motors from Pratt & Whitney, a division ofUnited Technologies (UTX). Meanwhile, the A350s have issues with their cabin equipment. Airbus has only delivered six A320neos and six A350s so far this year.

United Tech shares rose 2.2%.

April orders were up for Airbus, helping push the European aerospace giant to 117 orders between January and April. But Boeing still leads with 174 gross orders.

Last month, Boeing reported a 4.3% drop in first-quarter commercial deliveries to 176 planes on lower demand for its larger 767 and 747 jets. Its backlog includes 5,700 commercial orders valued at $480 billion. But it’s been losing market share to rival Airbus.