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General Electric produces engines for both Boeing and Airbus jets in a joint venture with Safran.

Remy Gabalda/AFP via Getty Images

United Airlines

is making a huge order for hundreds of new jets from

Boeing

and

Airbus.

The order is the largest in the carrier’s history and has implications for the entire commercial aerospace value chain.

But the stock seeing the biggest moves in response to the news isn’t even mentioned in United’s news release: General Electric.

United Airlines Holdings (ticker: UAL) is ordering 270 jets, worth a total of roughly $27 billion to $30 billion at current list price. It’s the largest order by an airline in the past decade, according to the company.

The order is for 200

Boeing

(BA) 737 MAX jets—including the new, stretch version of the plane—as well as 70

Airbus

(AIR.France) A320 NEO jets.

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The order will is good news for companies ranging from aerospace suppliers to aircraft makers to airlines. Boeing stock rose 0.7% in recent Tuesday trading, while Airbus stock slipped 0.2% in overseas trading. United stock was also down 0.2%. Stock in

General Electric

(GE), however, is getting the biggest bounce, up 1.2%.

GE might not have been mentioned in United’s announcement, but it will undoubtedly benefit from the order: It makes the engines for both jets. In fact, GE’s commercial aerospace operations are the company’s largest and most profitable business. GE and

Safran

(SAF.France) make all of the engines for the MAX in their 50/50 joint venture called CFM. Airlines can order A320 NEO jets with engines from that joint venture, or from

Raytheon Technologies

‘ (RTX) Pratt & Whitney division.

Safran stock edged 0.5% lower in overseas trading.

The relative moves makes some sense, as GE shares have been beaten up the most out of the group. They have dived more than 75% from all-time highs, while shares of Boeing and United have fallen about 45% from their records. Safran and Airbus stocks are down about 20% from all-time highs.

GE stock has been on the mend recently, as the commercial aerospace industry has made progress recovering from its Covid-induced depression. U.S. commercial air traffic in June is down roughly 25% compared with prepandemic levels, according to the U.S. Transportation Security Administration. But traffic is up almost 290% compared with dreadful 2020 demand.

GE shares, coming into Tuesday, were up about 19% year to date, better than comparable gains of the

S&P 500

and

Dow Jones Industrial Average.

Write to Al Root at allen.root@dowjones.com

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