Visitors take photos of Hong Kong Island in south China's Hong Kong, July 14, 2020. (WU XIAOCHU / XINHUA)

The values of Hong Kong's total exports and imports of goods both recorded year-on-year decreases in June, at 1.3 percent and 7.1 percent respectively, the Census and Statistics Department of China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government announced on Monday.

A spokesman for the HKSAR government said that the moderated year-on-year decline in merchandise exports in June mainly reflected a pick-up in exports to the mainland

In June, the value of Hong Kong's total exports decreased to HK$305.6 billion, and the value of imports of goods decreased to HK$338.9 billion.

A trade deficit of HK$33.3 billion, or 9.8 percent of the value of imports, was recorded for the month.

ALSO READ: Hong Kong's exports down 7.4% in May

A spokesman for the HKSAR government said that the moderated year-on-year decline in merchandise exports in June mainly reflected a pick-up in exports to the mainland of 8.8 percent.

The low base of comparison in the same month last year also partly contributed. Exports to the US, EU and many other major Asian markets fell by varying degrees amid a deep global recession, he said.

For the second quarter as a whole, the value of merchandise exports fell by 4.3 percent from a year earlier, visibly narrower than the decline of 9.7 percent in the first quarter, he added.

ALSO READ: HK overall exports down 3.7% in April, exports to mainland up

Looking ahead, the spokesman said the continued spread of COVID-19 in various parts of the world is still a key threat to the global economic outlook. 

In face of a challenging external environment, Hong Kong's merchandise export performance will likely remain constrained in the near term. The HKSAR government will continue to monitor the situation closely, he added.

READ MORE: Hong Kong's first quarter exports decline 9.7% year on year