A cargo ship loaded with containers is pictured at the port in Hong Kong on Oct 5, 2019. (ANTHONY WALLACE / AFP)

HONG KONG - Hong Kong's exports recorded a year-on-year decrease of 2.3 percent in August, according to the Census and Statistics Department of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government on Thursday.

For the first eight months of 2020 as a whole, the value of total exports of goods decreased by 5.8 percent over the same period in 2019. Concurrently, the value of imports of goods decreased by 8.1 percent.

Concurrently, the value of imports of goods decreased by 8.1 percent

ALSO READ: Hong Kong's exports face challenging times, says HKTDC survey

A government spokesman said that merchandise exports continued to fall moderately year-on-year in August as the global economy remained weak.

Hong Kong's merchandise export performance will likely remain constrained in the near term due to factors such as the COVID-19 pandemic, the spokesman added.