Passenger car sales in Feb up 55% to 942,900 units

Shanghai, March 9 (Gasgoo.com) China's passenger-car sales in February rose 55.3% from a year earlier to 942,900 units, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) said today, media reported.

Febuary sales of cars, MPVs and SUVs slowed from January, as buyers stayed away during the week-long Lunar New Year holiday which fell on mid-Feb this year but on late-Jan last year. Sales grew 115.5% in January to 1.32 million cars, according to the industry association.

China's total auto sales, including passenger and commercial vehicles, rose 46% to more than 1.21 million last month, slower than January when sales more than doubled from a year earlier to top 1.6 million units, a new record.

Government stimulus measures, such as tax cuts and trade-in subsidies for smaller, fuel-efficient vehicles, have spurred China's auto sales growth since early last year, although the pace is expected to slow this year.

In 2009, China's passenger vehicle sales jumped 52.9% to 10.3 million units, with sales in December alone jumped 88.7% from a year earlier to 1.1 million units, said the CAAM.

Previous data from the China Passenger Car Association said the country's sales of passenger cars rose 45% in February from a year earlier to 881,085 units.