Ethiopia's national air carrier Ethiopian Airlines (ET) will commence flights to the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen in June 2018, an Ethiopian official said on Wednesday.

Speaking to Xinhua, Tewolde Gebremariam, CEO of ET, said the latest destination makes business sense with China being an important market for the airlines.

Shenzhen, in China's Guangdong Province, is home to internationally known high-tech companies including Huawei and ZTE.

Ethiopian Airlines currently has five destinations in China, being Beijing, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Chengdu and Guangzhou.

Ethiopian Airlines became the first African carrier and the fourth in the world to fly to China back in 1973.