I called both NW and CO. Both did not have availability on China Southern. The interesting thing is that the NW award is only 20k if available and CO wants 50k for the same ticket. This is a large disparity considering they are both part of skyteam.

Looks like I'll have to fork out $650 to purchase a ticket. Does anyone know a travel agent in China that sells international tickets at a discount? Published fares are extremly high.