China Jan-March new car sales up 2.67% to 4.98 mln

New vehicle sales in China in the first three months of the year gained 2.67 percent year on year to hit 4.98 million, bringing the total number of cars in China to about 192 million, figures released by the Ministry of Public Security showed Friday.

Sales growth accelerated, with the 2.67 percent growth rate almost one percentage point higher than growth in the corresponding period last year, the ministry said.

Government stimulus policies - including lower taxes on small-displacement automobiles and subsidies for farmers replacing old vehicles with new ones - spurred the increase in sales, the ministry said.

Almost 205 million Chinese can drive a vehicle, and 22 million, or 10.75 percent, have held their driver's license for less than one year, the ministry's statistics show.

Nearly 80 percent of licensed drivers are aged between 26 and 50.