China's auto sales soar in first six months

Jul 9, 2009, 12:51 GMT

   Beijing - China's sales of locally made vehicles soared by nearly 18 per cent to a record 6.1 million units in the first six months of this year, a state-run industry association reported on Thursday.

   Vehicles sales in June hit 1.1 million units, up 36 per cent year-on-year, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers said in a statement.

   Chinese auto firms produced six million cars from January to June, up 15 per cent, the association said, as sales were buoyed by the government's package of measures to stimulate the economy, particularly domestic consumption.

   Sales of passenger vehicles rose by 26 per cent year-on-year in the first six months, reaching 4.5 million units, while production of passenger vehicles climbed 21 per cent to 4.4 million units, the statement said.

   State media said the halving of the sales tax on small cars in January and the recent offering of government subsidies to rural residents who trade in older vehicles had both contributed to the strong sales.

   The China Daily newspaper quoted the association as saying it was 'cautiously optimistic' that Chinese producers would record total vehicle sales of more than 11 million this year, up from its forecast of 10.2 million vehicles in April.

   Many economists have forecast annual growth of around 7 per cent in China's gross domestic product this year.