Eight Chinese fishermen remained missing Saturday after their fishing boat collided with a foreign cargo ship and sank in the East China Sea on Friday, said the local maritime bureau.

The accident happened at around 6:20 p.m. Friday, the maritime bureau in Zhoushan City of the eastern Zhejiang Province said in a press release.

The fishing boat, registered in Zhejiang's Taizhou City, collided with the large foreign ship before sinking into the seawater off Zhoushan, it said.

Of the 10 people on board the boat, two were rescued by fishermen from another fishing boat that was passing by.

After receiving reports of the accident, the Zhoushan maritime rescue center sent six rescue boats to the site, and began searching for the hit-and-run ship.

Within three hours, authorities found the suspected Bangladesh-registered ship named "Mighty Royal". Its captain confessed to the collision early Saturday.

Rescuers are still searching for the missing fishermen.

Mighty Royal was en route from Daishan Island in Zhoushan to Fukuyama in Japan.