Australia’s biggest airline Qantas Airways Limited
(ASX:QAN) has inked a new five-year joint venture agreement with Chinese carrier, China Eastern.
Both airlines will now seek approvals from Australian and Chinese regulators with view to starting the JV mid next year.
The latest deal is an extension of an existing six-year agreement aiming to increase flights and open up new routes between the two countries.
Qantas says China is Australia’s most valuable inbound tourism market and projected to contribute up to $9 billion annually to the Australian economy by 2020.
Qantas Airways reported a net loss of $2.84 billion in the full 2014 financial year.
