As President Xi Jinping landed in New Delhi for the BRICS Summit on Saturday morning, China Southern Airlines announced that it would resume regular passenger services on the Guangzhou-New Delhi route from September 21 after a six-year hiatus. The airline will operate more than 100 weekly flights across its eight round-trip routes in South Asia, the carrier said.

We look at the importance of Guangzhou, often called the Southern Gateway to China, for Indian business travellers and as a transit hub.

Gateway to Southern China

Located in southern China, Guangzhou is the capital and largest city of Guangdong Province, situated on the Pearl River in the south-central part of the province. Often called the “Southern Gateway” to China, it lies roughly 120 km off Hong Kong.

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It remains one of the primary metropolitan destinations for Indian business and leisure travelers in mainland China alongside Beijing and Shanghai, supported by major trade links. The city offers extensive wholesale markets for apparel, accessories, and electronics, making it a primary hub for Indian business owners importing goods.

An estimated 3,000 Indian business professionals and traders are based in Guangzhou, contributing to consistent commercial travel between the city and Indian hubs.

It is a key destination for Indian travellers primarily due to its massive role in international trade, wholesale sourcing and business events.

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The largest trade fair in China, Canton Fair, held biannually, showcases a wide range of products and attracts buyers and sellers from around the world, contributing significantly to Guangzhou’s economy and global trade.

Transit hub

It is a major international and domestic transportation hub in southern China, with many flights using Guangzhou as a stopover on the way to the US. China Southern, which announced the resumption of the Delhi-Guangzhou sector from September 21, is a key player on this route.

In fact, Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport recorded over five million inbound and outbound foreign national visits last year, reflecting a major rise in international transit traffic.

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Direct flights between India and Guangzhou were suspended for over five years following pandemic-era restrictions, and later owing to the India-China strain over the Galwan standoff. Before travel disruptions and restrictions began in 2020, approximately 142,000 Indian tourists visited China overall in 2019, as per official statistics.

Although direct flights halted in 2020, passenger traffic between the two countries did not disappear altogether. Almost 5 lakh passengers travelled between India and China via hubs such as Singapore, Bangkok, and Hong Kong in 2024.