ANCHORAGE (Alaska) - THE Coast Guard late on Friday suspended its search for a container ship crew member who was presumed to have fallen overboard into the North Pacific Ocean.

Yom Kai Bao Fang, 37, was reported missing late on Thursday night from the 685-foot Sao Paulo, a Hong Kong-flagged vessel en route to Mexico.

The search area was about 1,200 kilometres southwest of Alaska's Kodiak Island. Two Coast Guard helicopters covered a search area of 4,400 square kilometres. The Sao Paulo crew also retraced the ship's previous course.

Mr Yom, a Chinese national, was last seen on Thursday morning. He was discovered missing after he didn't report for his shift seven hours later and could not be found during a search of the ship.

None of the life jackets or survival gear on board was missing.

Coast Guard Petty Officer Charly Hengen said seas and winds were calm and visibility was good during the time Mr Yom could have gone missing. -- AP