Dongfeng Motor March vehicle sales rise 41 pct

SHANGHAI, April 11 (Reuters) - Dongfeng Motor Group Co's vehicle sales in China rose 41 percent in March from a year earlier, beating 24.72 percent overall growth in the world's second-largest auto market.

Dongfeng, China's third-largest automaker, sold 120,605 vehicles in March, it said in a statement on Friday.

Sales of passenger cars grew 41.35 percent to 71,661 units last month, while sales of commercial vehicles were up 40.62 percent at 48,944 units, it said.

From January to March, its passenger car sales rose 29.35 percent to 180,150 units, while sales of commercial vehicles were up 31.87 percent at 47,865 units.

Dongfeng's venture with PSA Peugeot-Citroen moved 23,373 cars in March, up 3.61 percent, after declines during the first two months of the year.

The French car maker blamed the falls on freak snow storms that battered many of the country's eastern and southern regions and blocked supplies of auto parts.

At Dongfeng's venture with Nissan Motor, car sales grew 34.99 percent to 31,845 units in March, while sales of commercial vehicles rose 30.36 percent to 47,834 units, Dongfeng said.

Sales at Dongfeng's tie-up with Honda Motor surged 70.48 percent last month to 16,443 units, it said.