In response to the rumor that the Shanghai Airlines and China Eastern are considering a cooperation agreement,Shanghai Airlines cited it was groundless while China Eastern Airlines acknowledged they intended to do so,eastday.com reported today.

A piece of information was released by a website last Friday that the two airlines were considering cooperation,sparked quite a stir in the aviation sector.

The rumor came from a series of moves taken by China Eastern,such as buying stakes from Wuhan Airlines and Sichuan Airlines and purchasing a great number of planes.

Shanghai Airlines,one of the leading local airlines in the country,is a tough rival of the Shanghai-based China Eastern Airlines and bilateral cooperation would definitely reshuffle the local and even national aviation sector.

Cooperation,such as buying shares from each other,never took place between the two airlines and no possible cooperation is expected in the future,said a spokesman for Shanghai Airlines.

China Eastern Airlines not only restructuring with the China Northwest Airlines and Yunnan Airlines,seeks cooperation with local airlines as well,said the spokesman with the China Eastern Airlines."We are willing to cooperate with Shanghai Airlines,but have not had talks or made contacts yet,"he said.

( eastday.com May 22, 2002)