Direct Delhi–Guangzhou Flights Resume Weeks Before the Canton Fair

China Southern Airlines said on 12 September 2026 that it would resume scheduled passenger flights between Guangzhou and New Delhi from 21 September. The timing is not incidental for anyone who buys from China: the 140th Canton Fair opens in Guangzhou on 15 October, roughly three weeks later.

For Indian importers, this is the first time in years that the country's largest sourcing event sits at the end of a direct flight rather than a connection through Singapore, Bangkok, Hong Kong or the Gulf.

Which routes are flying again

Direct India–China air links were suspended for around five years and have been restored in stages through 2025 and 2026:

• Kolkata–Guangzhou, operated by IndiGo, was the first route to return.
• Delhi–Shanghai Pudong resumed with Air India from 1 February 2026, initially four times a week and stepping up to five from late March.
• Delhi–Beijing restarted with Air China in March 2026.
• Kunming–Kolkata resumed with China Eastern in April 2026, with six weekly round trips.
• Guangzhou–New Delhi returns with China Southern from 21 September 2026.

Schedules are still being added and revised as carriers test demand, so confirm the current timetable when you book rather than relying on any route list, including this one.

Why Guangzhou matters more than the other routes

Shanghai and Beijing are the headline business destinations, but for sourcing, Guangzhou is the one that counts. It is the gateway to the Pearl River Delta — Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Dongguan, Foshan and Zhongshan — where a very large share of consumer electronics, appliances, furniture, lighting, hardware and textile manufacturing actually sits. It is also the host city of the Canton Fair.

Until now, an Indian buyer visiting factories in the region was adding a connection, a layover and often an overnight in each direction. Removing that changes the arithmetic of a short sourcing trip far more than it changes a long one.

What it actually changes

1. Short trips become viable. A two or three day factory visit is hard to justify when travel consumes two days in each direction. Direct service makes a focused trip — audit one supplier, inspect one production run — realistic.
2. Lower total cost per visit. Fewer hotel nights and fewer connecting sectors, even where the headline fare is not cheaper.
3. Easier pre-shipment inspection. Buyers who previously signed off on photographs can more practically go and look before releasing the balance payment.
4. Samples and documents move faster. Restored passenger routes add belly cargo capacity on the same city pairs, which matters for sample shipments and courier timelines.

The visa side has moved too

Flights are only half the problem. Both sides have eased travel documentation as well — India resumed tourist visa processing for Chinese nationals, and Chinese visa issuance to Indian travellers has normalised compared with the suspension years. Business and trade visas remain the correct category for a buyer attending a trade fair or visiting factories.

Apply early regardless. Application volumes climb sharply in the weeks before each Canton Fair phase, and a direct flight is of no use if the visa is still in process.

What it does not change

A direct flight makes a supplier easier to visit. It does not make them verified.

The fundamentals of buying from China are unchanged: confirm business registration, order samples against a written specification, establish whether you are dealing with a manufacturer or a trading company, and agree who carries responsibility if goods arrive damaged, late or off specification. Meeting someone in person is a useful signal, not a substitute for the checks worth running before you pay.

It also does not change the underlying trade picture. India continues to run a very large goods trade deficit with China, and policy on Chinese investment and on specific import categories has not loosened simply because the flights are back. Easier travel is a logistics improvement, not a shift in trade policy.

If you are planning a Canton Fair trip

The 140th session runs in three phases: 15 to 19 October, 23 to 27 October, and 31 October to 4 November 2026. The phases do not overlap and the exhibitors change completely between them, so confirm which phase covers your product category before booking anything — that decision matters more than which flight you take.

Our Canton Fair guide covers phase selection, buyer registration, accommodation and how to work the floor so you leave with a shortlist worth following up.