Chinese airlines have won a reprieve against extreme competition from fast rail on their premier route, between Beijing and Shanghai, with the railways ministry announcing fairly high fares for its imminent service. For the fastest services, a one-way second class ticket, roughly equivalent to an airline’s economy class, will cost 555 yuan ($86), while the somewhat better first class will cost 935 yuan, says the ministry.

An agreement to further liberalize travel between Chinese and Taiwanese airlines will result in a 50% increase in air services and five more cities getting direct cross-strait links. Unveiling a new traffic driver, China says it will allow trips to Taiwan by individual tourists—as distinct from business travelers and group tourists, who are already allowed.

HNA Group unit Tianjin Airlines aims to massively increase its fleet over the coming two years to 140 aircraft, almost half of them Airbus A330s and A320s, from the 57 regional jets it now operates. By 2013 the carrier, based in its namesake city in northern China, will operate 500 routes to 100 cities and carry 15 million passengers annually, compared with about 4 million currently, Chairman Li Weijian says.