China National Aviation Corp, the parent of Hong Kong-listed Air China, said it is not ruling out the possibility of trying to defeat Singapore Airlines' proposed major stake acquisition of China Eastern Airlines at the Shanghai-based carrier's upcoming shareholders' meeting.

But whether CNAC - which holds an 11.02 percent stake in China Eastern's H shares - would make another attempt to buy out the airline all depends on share performance and benefits of such a move, CNAC chairman Li Jiaxiang told reporters in Beijing.

Last month, Air China and its strategic partner, Cathay Pacific Airways, withdrew from their hostile bid to buy a US$4 billion stake in China Eastern, the mainland's third-largest carrier. The deal would have scuttled the US$918 million offer by Singapore Airlines and its parent, Temasek Holdings, for a 24 percent interest.

Li denied that CNAC's unsuccessful bid was due to objections and interference from the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission.

At the time, Air China said it would not make another pitch for at least three months.

CNAC has been accumulating China Eastern shares to become a major shareholder. Li said CNAC used internal resources to buy China Eastern stock in Hong Kong when the cost per share was HK$2.

Since then, the shares have soared 311.5 percent, closing at HK$8.23 on Oct. 15, which shows the major reason for buying the shares was to maximize profit, Li said.

He said whether CNAC would line up other major fund managers to vote down the proposal by Singapore Airlines and Temasek will also be based on same theory - it all depends on the share price.

The Singaporean offer requires the approval of two-thirds of China Eastern's minority shareholders.