This photo shows a general view of a Hong Kong container port at the Kwai Chung Customhouse Cargo Examination Compound in Hong Kong, Sept 5, 2018. (ISAAC LAWRENCE / AFP)

HONG KONG - The value of Hong Kong's total exports increased to HK$311.1 billion (about US$40.04 billion) in February, up 30.4 percent from the same month last year, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government said Thursday.

The value of imports of goods increased by 17.6 percent to HK$325.8 billion during the same period. A trade deficit of HK$14.7 billion or 4.5 percent of the value of imports, was recorded in February, according to the Census and Statistics Department of the HKSAR government.

A trade deficit of HK$14.7 billion or 4.5 percent of the value of imports, was recorded in February, according to the Census and Statistics Department

ALSO READ: Trade council forecasts HK exports up 5% next year

Comparing the three-month period ending February with the preceding three months on a seasonally adjusted basis, the value of exports rose 18.9 percent, while that of imports increased by 16 percent.

Taking the first two months of the year together to remove the distortion caused by the difference in timing of the Chinese New Year, the value of exports increased sharply by 37.6 percent over a year earlier, reflecting a further pick-up in growth momentum alongside the revival of global trading and production activities, a spokesman for the HKSAR government said. 

READ MORE: HK economy shows early signs of revival as exports jump