Lufthansa signs joint venture with Air China

German airline Lufthansa and Air China said on Tuesday they had signed a deal to jointly operate all the groups' connections between Europe and China.

"The Chinese aviation market is one of the most important growth markets worldwide. We want to profit from this growth together," Lufthansa chief executive Carsten Spohr said in a statement.

The Chinese flag carrier and Lufthansa, Europe's largest airline, have had a joint venture in their sights since signing a memorandum of understanding in 2014.

The move is "another major step of Air China's globalisation strategy," chairman Cai Jianjiang said.