CHINA Southern Airlines (stock code: 600029) announced yesterday that it will purchase 45 aircraft from Boeing and Airbus. China Southern said it would buy 20 A320s from Airbus and 25 B737-800 aircraft from Boeing at a total cost of 23.5 billion yuan (US$3.69 billion).

The catalogue price for A320s ranges from US$66.5 million to US$85.9 million, but the airline said the real purchase price would be lower. The Boeing aircraft costs US$70.5 million to US$79 million, and China Southern said it would be able to buy the planes at a discount.