"We are honoured GDAT has decided to bolster their all-Airbus fleet of 26 helicopters with the addition of 50 H160 helicopters," Bruno Even, CEO of Airbus Helicopters, said in a statement.

Macron visited Guangzhou in China's southern industrial heartland on Friday, the final stop on a three-day visit in which he has repeatedly pushed his counterpart Xi Jinping to help end the Ukraine conflict.

His office had said beforehand that he would seek "another path" from the directly confrontational route often taken by the United States, with trade with China still seen as an important part of ties.

"This contract is a great example of the importance of economic and trade cooperation between France and China," Peter Jiang, chairman of GDAT, was quoted as saying in the Airbus statement.

Shanghai-based GDAT specialises in helicopter sales, leasing and maintenance, with clients including the Chinese emergency services and government agencies.

The H160 is marketed as a versatile helicopter by Airbus that can be used for roles ranging from VIP travel to military missions.

Airbus said Friday's order was the largest for civilian use since the launch of the H160 in 2015.

No financial details were given about the value of the deal.

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AIRBUS GROUP