TAIPEI - A PANAMA-registered freighter sank off the west coast of Taiwan after being struck by a wave, killing eight crew and leaving four missing, the coastguard said on Tuesday.

The ship, which set out from Hong Kong with a crew from China and loaded with gravel, sank about 20 nautical miles off Taiwan early on Monday, said Taiwan coastguard spokesman Hsieh Ching Ching. Winds west of Taiwan are normally strong in January.

'When the wave hit, water rushed into the ship and it immediately sank,' Mr Hsieh said.

A coastguard search team of five vessels and six helicopters had found 13 survivors.

A Panama-registered freighter sank off the Taiwan coast in November, killing all but one of the 28 crew.