AirAsia searching for Chinese partner to develop its services in new market
AirAsia Group’s chief, Tony Fernandes, is currently searching for a Chinese partner to expand the airline’s services. Currently operating in 15 Chinese cities, earnings from China accounted for 19% of the company’s 2015 revenue. The airline has said that rather than expanding further into China’s largest cities, it hopes to develop new markets in different regions of the country.

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Low-cost carrier AirAsia Group's chief Tony Fernandes said he would love to have a joint venture in China, to tap into the booming travel industry in the world's second-largest economy. "I believe there is a strong chance of that happening so we have to wait and see," said Tony Fernandes, group chief executive officer of AirAsia Group , in a CNBC exclusive. While several interested parties have approached the Malaysia-based airline, Fernandes said it's still early days in the hunt for the right partner. Developing the China business would be more than just ferrying Chinese tourists, he noted.

AirAsia Group CEO Tony Fernandes speaks at a press conference in Sydney on March 12, 2015. Peter Parks | AFP | Getty Images

"Everyone looks at just bringing the Chinese out, but we have a dual market where a lot of Southeast Asians are going out to China," Fernandes said. AirAsia currently flies to 15 Chinese destinations, including secondary and tertiary cities. China contributed nearly 19 percent to the budget carrier's 2015 revenue, according to its chief executive. But AirAsia wouldn't necessarily be looking at China's largest cities. "We are not interested in developing what has already been developed...what we have been good at is developing new markets, new traffic, and opening up different parts of China," he added. Additionally, the budget carrier has been eyeing a new listing in Hong Kong as it expands into North Asia, Reuters had reported in July. "A consolidated AirAsia where we own 100 percent of all the airlines, can be moved forward through a different listing," Fernandes told CNBC.

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