Barclays analysts described it as "implausible". In Europe an airline must be majority-owned by EU investors in order to maintain its traffic rights under international air service agreements.Lufthansa is currently almost 69 percent owned by German investors but 13 percent is in the hands of U.S. investors and a further 9 percent is owned by other nationalities. In addition, if Etihad wished to buy more than 30 percent of Lufthansa, it would have to make an offer for the company as a whole according to German takeover rules. Etihad's local rival Qatar Airways has built up a 20 percent stake in British Airways-owner IAG (ICAG.L) by purchasing shares on the open market. That has boosted links between Europe and the Asia-Pacific region. Credit Suisse said Lufthansa, though, already had joint ventures with Singapore Airlines (SIAL.SI), Air China (601111.SS) and All Nippon Airways (9202.T) covering the region.