China and US to explore boosting number of commercial flights

China and the US agreed to explore increasing the number of flights between the world's two largest economies, encouraging students, scholars and business professionals to visit each other. The agreement was reached during the visit of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken as one of five points of consensus. It was confirmed by Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning at a Tuesday briefing. International air travel to and from China is still experiencing a patchy recovery nearly half a year after the country lifted its pandemic-era border controls, with the resumption of services between China and the U.S. lagging far behind. Fewer than 6% of the U.S.-China flights that existed in 2019 have resumed, according to a Nomura report. Flights to North America, including to the U.S. and Canada, accounted for only 1% of total international flights operated in the week of June 12-18, data from flight tracking app Flight Master shows. Meanwhile, air tickets between China and the U.S. are expensive, as demand is high. Canada and the U.S. are among the top destinations for visa applications in China, according to visa service provider VFS Global. U.S.-China routes have been among the industry's most profitable, with minimal fluctuations in business, tourism, family visits and student passenger flows before the pandemic. With sparse direct flights, many passengers have to transfer in Hong Kong, Seoul, Istanbul or Abu Dhabi, costing domestic airlines revenue. The slow recovery in international flights continues to weigh on the operations of Chinese airlines. Air China, China Eastern Airlines and China Southern Airlines -- the big three state-owned carriers that were major domestic operators of China-U.S. flights before the pandemic -- are deep in the red. They lost a combined 8.6b yuan ($1.2b) in Q1 after nearly 109b yuan of losses in 2022.<br/>