In January 2010, JP Morgan reported that Bombardier was considering a 150-seat version of the CSeries; Bombardier described the report as speculative. At the Farnborough Airshow in July 2012, Bombardier started discussions with AirAsia about a proposed 160-seat configuration for the CS300. Consequently, by November 2012, this configuration was included in the CS300 project, although AirAsia rejected the proposal. In May 2015, "The Wall Street Journal" reported that Bombardier was considering marketing a CS500, a further stretch of the CS300, to compete with the 160- to 180-seat versions of the Boeing 737 and A320 airliners, but was uncommitted. The existing wing would be capable of supporting a stretched version. After the Airbus partnership in 2018, the stretched variant (renamed A220-500 accordingly) would allow Airbus to enlarge its A320-family replacement to better compete with the proposed Boeing New Midsize Airplane. In January 2019, Airbus hinted that a larger A220 variant could be developed, owing to ramped-up production and market demand for the current production models. However, in June 2019, Airbus indicated that it would not consider launching an A220-500 until it has solved its A220 production issues, and definitely not in the following year. Speculation about a stretched variant continued in November 2019, with Air France mentioning an A220-500 during an investor briefing on its modernisation strategy. In December 2020 Air France said it would consider the Boeing 737 MAX and the A321 as alternatives if the A220-500 is not developed in time.