China unveils new jumbo jet company: report

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BEIJING (AFP) - China unveiled its own jumbo jet maker in Shanghai on Sunday, state press reported, in a move that could eventually rival Airbus and Boeing.

The new company, Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (CACC), will be responsible for researching, developing, manufacturing and marketing a made-in-China large passenger aircraft, Xinhua news agency said.

China announced early last year that it planned to develop a 150-seat passenger aircraft, which could eventually compete against planes made by Boeing and Airbus, the world's two dominant commercial jet makers.

CACC has a registered capital of 19 billion yuan (2.7 billion dollars), Xinhua said, with the government investing 6 billion yuan to become the largest shareholder.

State press reported in January that China's two major aircraft makers, both state-owned, were expected to consolidate their commercial aircraft manufacturing businesses and set up a firm to make a domestic passenger jet.

The two companies, China Aviation Industry Corp I (AVIC I) and AVIC II, are to be shareholders of the new aircraft maker, Xinhua reported on Sunday.

The aircraft, expected to take off by 2020, will be assembled in Shanghai, with the nose, fuselage and tail sections to be manufactured in other parts of the country by companies controlled by AVIC I and AVIC II, according to earlier reports.