MEXICO CITY, May 22 (Xinhua) -- The exchange of tourism between China and Mexico has great potential ahead and will grow further due to the fledgling aerial relationship between the two nations, said a senior executive of China Southern Airlines on Wednesday.

In the first four months of the year, the revenues of the airline on the Guangzhou-Vancouver-Mexico City route grew by 30 percent year on year, said Diego Jiang at a conference held at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM).

"We have a lot of expectations when it comes to the Mexican market," Jiang said at the conference titled "Strategy and experience of China Southern Airlines in Mexico".

"The growth we have measured has been in steady steps thanks to the airline's strategy, and we expect greater growth this year," said Jiang at the event organized by UNAM's Center for China-Mexico Studies.

The Mexican route, which has three weekly flights since operations began in April 2017, has been strengthened with new commercial alliances, especially with local travel agencies, Jiang said.

Mexico received a total of 167,663 tourists from China in 2018, up 18.3 percent from 2017, according to the Mexican government.

China Southern Airlines is one of the largest airlines in China and also a leading player in Asia.