Vienna  - German airline Deutsche Lufthansa AG has submitted a valid bid for Austrian Airlines AG (AUA), the Austrian takeover commission confirmed Thursday, but it said it was still uncertain if there would be a deal.

"Against the background of AUA's economic development and an apparent wide gap between the negotiating positions, it is uncertain whether the transaction can be concluded," the commission said in a statement.

The Austrian government is in the process of selling its 42.75-per-cent stake in the country's ailing flag carrier, but Air France has dropped out of the bidding process.

Hong Kong - Weakening demand and mounting losses have led Hong Kong Airlines to suspend flights to three cities in China, a media report said Thursday.

The regional carrier will halt services to Xian, Chengdu and Chongqing when the winter schedule takes effect on Sunday, the South China Morning Post said.

Flights to Xian will be restored next summer.

Hong Kong Airlines together with rival carrier Hong Kong Express Airways are both partly owned by China's Hainan Airlines Group.

Washington - The fifth larg

Vienna - The Austrian government will have to rescue Austrian Airlines AG if the privatisation process fails, Transport Minister Werner Faymann said Wednesday, as he announced that there was one valid bid for the ailing flag carrier.

Neither Faymann nor the government holding OeIAG said whether the German airline Deutsche Lufthansa AG had submitted the offer for the 42.75-per-cent stake in Austrian Airlines that is held by OeIAG.

Although French-Dutch carrier Air France-KLM announced Tuesday their withdrawal from the bidding process, analysts said that OeIAG could decide Monday to give Lufthansa and Air France another month or so for their offers.

New York  - US aerospace giant Boeing reported Wednesday that its third-quarter net income fell 38 per cent year-on-year to 695 million dollars, as the company was hit by the costs of a protracted machinists' strike.

Earnings per share in the period came to 0.96 dollars, down 33 per cent from the third quarter last year, with Boeing also citing the costs of supplier production problems on customer-furnished galleys for some wide-bodied planes.

Vienna  - The Austrian government will have to rescue Austrian Airlines AG if the privatisation process fails, Transport Minister Werner Faymann said Wednesday, as he announced that there was one valid bid for the ailing flag carrier.

While Faymann left it open whether there was another, incomplete, offer, the government holding OeIAG said it would stick to its schedule and announce a decision Monday on the sale of its
42.75-per- cent stake in Austrian Airlines.

As the privatisation faced uncertainty, the price of Austrian Airlines shares crashed to 2.9 euros (3.9 dollars) on the Vienna stock market, a decline of 28.9 per cent from yesterday.