China Airlines says growth to slow this year

China Airlines' (華航) sales growth may slow to between 6 percent and 7 percent this year after Taiwan's largest carrier boosted demand last year by introducing new services to Japan and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

"We are not adding any new passenger routes this year," spokesman Johnson Sun (孫鴻文) told reporters in Taipei yesterday.

China Airlines boosted sales 12 percent last year, as new routes to Sapporo, Japan and Abu Dhabi in the UAE helped it tap a 5.6 percent increase in Taiwan's overseas travel demand.

Passenger services account for about 60 percent of China Airlines' sales, Sun said.

Profit at China Airlines' domestic unit may fall as much as 44 percent this year to NT$50 million (US$1.5 million) from an estimated NT$90 million in last year, because of competition from a new train service, affiliate Mandarin Airlines (華信航空) chairman Michael Lo (樂大信) said yesterday. "We can't beat high-speed rail," he said. "It's not our market."

Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp (台灣高鐵) began operations on Jan. 5, offering trips between Taipei and Kaohsiung, the nation's largest port, for 30 percent less than airlines' fares.

Mandarin Airlines aims to fly more overseas flights to offset the decline in domestic sales, Lo said.