China’s private-jet market finding level flight path after sell-offs: source

An exodus of private business jets from China since the days of Covid-19 appears to be stabilising this year amid a potential shift in demand across industries, suggesting that sales by cash-strapped owners of the multimillion-dollar assets have largely run their course, according to an aviation-services firm.

While a few deliveries of new business jets in China are currently “pending”, very few were made last year, said Alud Davies, director of business operations and analytics at Hong Kong-based Asian Sky Group.

Mainland China lost a net six jets in 2025, following a sharper net decrease of 21 in 2024 – a contraction that outpaced all other Asian markets, the firm noted in its latest annual report.

“It’s fair to say it’s flattening out,” Davies said in an interview. “The number of aircraft that needed to be sold has been sold. The companies that are stable enough to continue their ownership are stable enough.”

Shifting economic winds have dampened demand in certain sectors while sowing interest in others, he explained, adding that while tech and automotive firms likely maintained an appetite for private aviation, the beleaguered real estate sector has pulled back.

“Maybe that’s an indicator of some sort,” Davies said.