BEIJING, June 8 (Xinhua) -- China's container transport for export purposes stayed unchanged from a month earlier in May, as market demand remained weak, according to data from the Shanghai Shipping Exchange.

The average China Export Containerized Freight Index stood at 799.9 points last month, down from 817.8 points for 2018, the exchange said in a statement.

Since the beginning of this year, the index has averaged 831.88 points, the exchange said, describing the container transport market last month as "relatively weak."

"Overall transport demand showed a trend of sluggish growth, the sub-indices for different routes were divided because of different supply and demand fundamentals," the statement said.

Last month, the sub-index for the Australia/New Zealand route dropped the most by 6.1 percent, and the Persian Gulf/Red Sea route declined 4.8 percent.

The China Export Containerized Freight Index was first released by the Shanghai Shipping Exchange in April 1998 as a barometer for the export shipping market.