Chinese travel rivals Ctrip, Qunar form partnership

China's two largest online travel websites, Ctrip.com and Baidu-backed Qunar, have effectively formed a partnership after a share swap deal between the two rivals.

Under the deal announced on Monday, Baidu will own shares representing 25 percent of Ctrip's voting interests, while Ctrip will own about 45 percent of Qunar's voting interests.

Four representatives from Ctrip will be appointed to Qunar's board of directors, and Baidu chairman Robin Li and vice president Tony Yip will join Ctrip's board.

The alliance will reshape China's fiercely competitive market for online travel.

The share prices of the New York-listed firms rallied after the news. Ctrip.com has a market valuation of around 13 billion U.S. dollars, while Qunar is valued at 6 billion U.S. dollars during Monday's trading in Nasdaq.

The deal is the latest in a series of tie-ups between rival Internet firms. Group-buying and restaurant-review websites Meituan and Dianping announced a merger this month.

In February, taxi hailing firms Didi and Kuaidi joined forces and the new firm is now valued at 16.5 billion U.S. dollars.