Carnival Corporation has announced a joint venture that will see it launch a Chinese cruise brand.

The agreement was formalised at a signing ceremony in London today, which was attended by David Cameron and Chinese President Xi Jinping.

The corporation says the line will be “the first world-class, multi-ship domestic cruise brand in the Chinese market.”

Under the structure of the new joint venture, Carnival Corporation and CSSC, the largest shipbuilder in China, plan to purchase and operate cruise ships.

CIC, a sovereign wealth fund in China, will serve as a significant investor.

Alan Buckelew, global COO for Carnival Corporation, said: “This cruising joint venture is a significant step forward for the cruise industry in China and a tremendous opportunity for us to work together with CSSC and CIC to grow awareness, interest and demand for cruise vacations among domestic Chinese travellers.

“Cruising is a relatively new vacation experience in China, and we believe this collaborative approach with our partners is critical to not only developing the country’s domestic cruise business, but also supporting China’s goal to become one of the world’s leading cruise markets in coming years.

“We are excited about using our scale and decades of experience as the world’s largest cruise company to help launch a multi-ship domestic cruise brand that will help spread the enjoyment of cruising to millions more Chinese vacationers.”

In July, Carnival Corporation announced Costa Cruises and – its brands that already sail in China – will continue to expand in 2016 with each brand adding a ship to its fleet in China.

Carnival Cruise Line and AIDA Cruises will enter the Chinese market in 2017.