AUSTRALIA'S flag carrier Qantas yestesday announced closer links with China Eastern Airlines to try to shore up traffic to Asia following the launch of its partnership with Emirates.

Qantas said it would boost codesharing between Melbourne and Shanghai, as well as on the Sydney-Nanjing-Beijing route and domestically between Shanghai and Nanjing, to increase its presence in the Chinese market.

"We said we would expand Qantas' Asian network through our airline partnerships and we're now delivering on that promise," said Qantas International's China manager Andrew Hogg.

The codeshare deal means Qantas customers can now book on 17 services between China and Australia per week and connect onwards in China to 11 domestic destinations, as well as to Singapore. Hogg said it would take the Australian carrier's total flights to Asia per week to 130, starting on May 1.

Despite turning its back on a tie-up with an Asian airline in favour of an ambitious partnership launched Sunday with Emirates, Qantas still sees Asia as a key pillar of growth for its ailing international arm.