Less than two months ago Boeing Co. went to Washington, hat in hand, asking for a $60 billion bailout for itself and its suppliers.
The company, which had spent heavily on stock buybacks and was still reeling from the 737 Max disaster, was an unlikely candidate for government support.
Yet by urging the Federal Reserve to take unprecedented steps to bolster credit markets, the Trump administration ended up helping the plane maker more than any government handout could.
The Fed’s decision to use its near limitless balance sheet to purchase corporate bonds eased liquidity so much that it was a game changer for the company, according to people with knowledge of the matter who asked not to be identified because they weren’t authorized to speak