American Airlines has agreed to pay $200 million for a stake in China Southern Airlines, the biggest of China's three major state-owned carriers, in a bid for a bigger share of the country's growing travel market. American and China Southern will expand commercial cooperation, possibly in sales, airport facilities and code-sharing, the Chinese airline said in an announcement Tuesday through the Hong Kong stock exchange. Two years ago, Delta Airlines paid $450 million for 3.55 percent of China Eastern Airlines. The third major U.S. carrier, United Airlines, has a partnership with Air China, the third major Chinese government-owned airline. ———China Southern Airlines: www.csair.com

Source: ABC News March 28, 2017 05:26 UTC