AirAsia targets China’s ‘still very big for us’ smaller cities such as Xian in bet on budget-conscious fliers, appetite for Southeast Asia
Malaysian budget carrier AirAsia plans to start new routes connecting smaller mainland Chinese cities with Southeast Asia to tap a recovery in the country’s travel market, as consumers become more budget conscious. It has also signed a deal with Ant Group that will create savings for Alipay+ users. Tony Fernandes, CEO of AirAsia’s parent, Capital A Berhad, told the Post in Shanghai on Friday that Xian, home to the world-famous terracotta army in China’s central Shaanxi province, and an undisclosed city in Inner Mongolia province will be the airline’s next destinations on the mainland.<br/>The expansion plan is in line with AirAsia’s efforts to chase annualised 15% growth in its Chinese business over the next few years. “There are two parts of growth here,” Fernandes said. “One is new cities, but the bigger one for me is to provide direct connectivity from the smaller cities. “Your smaller cities are still very big for us.” AirAsia, founded in 2001 by Fernandes with two aircraft, offers 17 routes to the mainland with about 160 flights a week. The airline links major Chinese cities such as Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou with Southeast Asian destinations like Kuala Lumpur, Kota Kinabalu and Johor Bahru. “What I found in an economic slowdown is that people generally go to lower-cost products and lower-cost airlines,” Fernandes said. “I guess we will benefit. “Maybe they don’t go to Europe or they don’t go to America, but they’ll come to Southeast Asia.” On Friday, Capital A formed a partnership with Chinese fintech giant Ant Group that will allow passengers to save on payment costs when using Alipay+ services to buy air tickets. Ant Group is an affiliate of Alibaba Group Holding, which owns the Post. Alipay+ services are geared towards customers outside the mainland and are distinct from Alipay services used by customers on the mainland. Alipay+ helps businesses take cross-border electronic payments from travellers using their own local apps, and currently supports 25 digital wallets including Alipay.<br/>
https://portal.staralliance.com/cms/news/hot-topics/2024-04-01/unaligned/airasia-targets-china2019s-2018still-very-big-for-us2019-smaller-cities-such-as-xian-in-bet-on-budget-conscious-fliers-appetite-for-southeast-asia
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AirAsia targets China’s ‘still very big for us’ smaller cities such as Xian in bet on budget-conscious fliers, appetite for Southeast Asia
Malaysian budget carrier AirAsia plans to start new routes connecting smaller mainland Chinese cities with Southeast Asia to tap a recovery in the country’s travel market, as consumers become more budget conscious. It has also signed a deal with Ant Group that will create savings for Alipay+ users. Tony Fernandes, CEO of AirAsia’s parent, Capital A Berhad, told the Post in Shanghai on Friday that Xian, home to the world-famous terracotta army in China’s central Shaanxi province, and an undisclosed city in Inner Mongolia province will be the airline’s next destinations on the mainland.<br/>The expansion plan is in line with AirAsia’s efforts to chase annualised 15% growth in its Chinese business over the next few years. “There are two parts of growth here,” Fernandes said. “One is new cities, but the bigger one for me is to provide direct connectivity from the smaller cities. “Your smaller cities are still very big for us.” AirAsia, founded in 2001 by Fernandes with two aircraft, offers 17 routes to the mainland with about 160 flights a week. The airline links major Chinese cities such as Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou with Southeast Asian destinations like Kuala Lumpur, Kota Kinabalu and Johor Bahru. “What I found in an economic slowdown is that people generally go to lower-cost products and lower-cost airlines,” Fernandes said. “I guess we will benefit. “Maybe they don’t go to Europe or they don’t go to America, but they’ll come to Southeast Asia.” On Friday, Capital A formed a partnership with Chinese fintech giant Ant Group that will allow passengers to save on payment costs when using Alipay+ services to buy air tickets. Ant Group is an affiliate of Alibaba Group Holding, which owns the Post. Alipay+ services are geared towards customers outside the mainland and are distinct from Alipay services used by customers on the mainland. Alipay+ helps businesses take cross-border electronic payments from travellers using their own local apps, and currently supports 25 digital wallets including Alipay.<br/>
