BEIJING, Mar 20: Airbus' Chinese market has the biggest potential for growth over the next two decades, according to the latest market forecast of Airbus, a worldwide leading aircraft manufacturer.
Airbus established its first assembly and delivery centre outside Europe in north China's Tianjin in 2008. In 2009, the centre delivered the first A320 family aircraft.
Components of A320 family aircraft are shipped to the Tianjin port and assembled there into standard airliners for deliveries. Located in Tianjin, a port city with a free trade zone, convenient logistics, rich resources and favourable policies, the centre developed fast.
Production at the centre has risen to four aircraft a month. By the end of early January this year, the Tianjin centre has assembled and delivered a total of 354 A320 family aircraft.
Having a large market that is growing rapidly and increasingly opening up for cooperation, the Chinese market is of strategic importance to the world leader in aeronautics.
The planes delivered to Chinese airlines by Airbus now account for 20 to 25 per cent of its total deliveries globally, which means almost one out of four Airbus planes is delivered to China each year.
A market forecast report released by the company says that China will need more than 6,500 passenger and freight aircraft in the next twenty years, which is 18 per cent of the overall demands globally in the same period.
Many factors, such as the rapid economic growth, rising middle-income group, ongoing urbanisation and greater connectivity to the global market, keep driving the quick development of civil aviation market in China, and especially that of the world, said George Xu, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Airbus China.
"Tianjin was selected because we value the large Chinese market, as well as its importance in radiating the whole Asia", said general manager of Airbus (Tianjin) Final Assembly Co Ltd. The assembled airliners in Tianjin are not only for Chinese customers, but also for airlines in the whole Asia.
Courtesy: People's Daily of China. [email protected]
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