Xinhua Airlines Group, which is due to be established soon, aims to be listed abroad in the latter half of next year, said a senior official of the Hainan Airlines in an exclusive interview with Xinhua-run Shanghai Securities News.

The to-be-established group, which will include airlines of Hainan, Xinhua, Shanxi and Chang'an, plans to raise 4-5 billion RMB yuan or Hong Kong dollars worth of funds through the listing, said Chen Feng, board chairman of the Hainan Airlines.

Chen told the paper that whether the new group would be listed in Nasdaq of the United States, or in London and Hong Kong has not been decided yet.

The group is currently regrouping the assets of the above-mentioned four airlines to prepare for being listed overseas, said Chen in the interview which was published on Wednesday.

The establishment of the group is an important step of the Chinese government in reforming the aviation industry, he noted.

Analysts here believed the regrouping of the four airlines aimed at meeting the requirements for being listed in the Hong Kong Stock Exchange next year.

(Xinhua News Agency July 14, 2006)