Didi partners with global car rental giant to expand overseas

A Chinese mobile phone user uses the taxi-hailing and car-service app Didi Chuxing on his smartphone in Jinan city, East China's Shandong province, Feb 22, 2015. [Photo/IC]

BEIJING - Chinese mobile transport platform Didi Chuxing announced Tuesday its agreement to partner with global car rental giant Avis Budget Group to offer overseas car rental services.

The two companies will coordinate product, technology and local marketing resources to provide Didi Chuxing's over 300 million registered users traveling outbound from China with easy and convenient car rental service in about 175 countries, according to their strategic partnership agreement.

Registered users with Didi Chuxing's mobile application will be able to book Avis and Budget rentals at airports and neighborhood locations around the globe, according to the agreement.

"Internationalization is a clear mission for Didi. The partnership is a key step in our broader initiative to go global. Together, we will provide quality local travel experiences across the world for China's fast-expanding outbound traveler community," said Fu Qiang, senior vice president of Didi Chuxing and general manager for Didi Car Rental.

China has been the world's top outbound tourism consumer for the past four years, with about 120 million Chinese people travelling overseas in 2015.

We also look forward to building a more connected global mobility network that builds growth in a spirit of openness and sharing, Fu added.

Didi inked a partnership with US counterpart Lyft last year for cross-platform services. Regulators in major Chinese cities rolled out strict requirements for car-hailing services in October, pushing Didi to further seek overseas market expansion.