Portugal ought to have direct flights to China, argues José Maria Ricciardi, President of investment bank BESI. The news was given on Friday by Portuguese economic news outlet Dinheiro Vivo.

BESI – Banco Espírito Santo de Investimento – was acquired by the Chinese group Haitong last year.

Speaking on the sidelines of a conference about the co-operation between China and Portugal, Mr Ricciardi argued Portugal should take advantage of the “exponential” growth of tourism from China to Europe.

Direct flights between Portugal and China would contribute to the development of Lisbon as an air transport centre, he said:

“We now have a hub to Latin America and Africa. If we have direct flights to China, that hub will be even stronger, as many Chinese people and people from other parts of Asia will come to Lisbon first, and from there go to Latin America and Africa”, Mr Ricciardi argued.

The President of BESI considered it a “mistake” that the Portuguese airline TAP Portugal had reportedly abandoned the idea of having a direct route to China. “If TAP doesn’t want to take advantage [of the situation], Chinese companies will,” he stated.

According to Dinheiro Vivo; Humberto Pedrosa and David Neeleman – the new owners of TAP since the air carrier was privatised –; do not agree with the firm’s previous plan to buy 12 Airbus A350 aircraft that would allow it to fly directly to destinations such as China.