China auto sales rebound in August

BEIJING --  Auto sales in China, the world's biggest car market, rebounded in August as subsidies for energy-efficient vehicles and a stronger currency spurred demand.

Sales rose 55.7 percent over a year earlier to 1.21 million vehicles, up from 1 million vehicles the month before, the Cabinet's China Automotive Technology and Research Center said Wednesday.

The increase compared with 17 percent year-on-year growth in July and 19.4 percent in June.

Sales of energy saving vehicles rose 32 percent to 129,600, the center said in a report posted on its website.

Demand was also relatively strong for imported vehicles, as Japanese and European automakers increasingly focus on serving the market for smaller, affordable cars, said the center's chairman, Zhao Hang, without giving specific figures.

A recent rise in the value of China's currency has also stimulated sales of imported cars. "That makes things cheaper," he said.

In June, China loosened controls that had kept its currency trading at about 6.83 yuan per U.S. dollar for over a year. Late Wednesday, the yuan was trading at 6.8112 to the dollar.

The rebound in sales is good news for global automakers looking to China to drive sales amid weak global demand. Sales this year are forecast to grow by no more than 20 percent, well off 2009's stunning 45 percent rise.

The automotive center, one of several sources of monthly data on Chinese auto sales and production, estimated sales in January to August at 9.5 million vehicles, up almost 32 percent from the same period of 2009.

Monthly sales growth had waned after March's 63 percent rise, prompting Beijing in June to renew subsidies of 3,000 yuan ($443) per vehicle for fuel-efficient cars and small trucks.

Automakers have nonetheless begun cutting back on output to match slowing demand.

Production rose 10 percent in July to 1.2 million units, down slightly from July, the report said. Output in the first eight months rose 35.5 percent, to 10.9 million vehicles, it said.