The deal signed Monday by the European aircraft maker Airbus and China for a purchase of 150 jets from Airbus A320 family would be worth between 7 and 8 billion dollars, said the European Aeronautic Defense and Space Company (EADS) on Thursday.

The planes are expected to be delivered from 2007, said Noel Forgeard, co-president of the Airbus' parent company EADS, which owns 80 percent of Airbus with British BAE System holding the other 20 percent.

The catalogue price of each A320 is 64.5 million dollars, but according to Airbus, such big deals will be the subject of hard and confidential negotiations over discounts and specification.

The estimated worth of 7-8 billion dollars is about 22.5 percent less than the catalogue prices of 9.7 billion dollars.

Airbus A320 is leading the single-aisle planes market with about 3,300 aircraft sold in the world.

The deal was signed Monday by Airbus chief executive Gustav Humbert and the president of the China Aviation Supplies Import and Export Group, Li Hai, during an official visit to France by Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao.

Source: Xinhua