Turkish eyes China markets

Turkish Airlines, CEO, Temel Kotil has announced that the Star Alliance carrier is currently evaluating new services to China, with Guangzhou a potential candidate for direct service. Turkish currently operates a daily service from its hub of Istanbul to Beijing as well as a daily service to Shanghai, it also operates an extension of some of its daily Beijing services to Shanghai.

The carrier also plans to operate direct cargo routes to link Shanghai, Beijing and Guangzhou with Istanbul, to take advantage of increased trade between the two countries. In 2008, the trade volume between China and Turkey reached USD12.5 billion, rising 7% year-on-year despite the global economic crisis.