China May car sales rise 16% y/y

Car sales in China, the world's second-largest vehicle market, rose 15.59 percent in May from a year earlier to 564,600 units, the country's official industry association said on Tuesday.

Vehicle sales, including cars, buses and trucks, rose 17.04 percent to 835,500 units in May, according to official data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers. In 2007, car sales in China grew 21.68 percent to 6.30 million units, following a 30.02 percent rise in 2006 and a 21.4 percent rise in 2005.

Below is a breakdown for sales in May and the first five months of the year.

MAY                     sales            pct change

Category                                   (on year)

All vehicles        835,500        17.04

Cars                    564,600        15.59

YEAR TO DATE  sales            pct change

Category                                    (on year)

All vehicles          4.34 mln       18.91

Cars                     3.02 mln        17.41

MAY                                      sales*

Car maker

-SAIC-GM-Wuling              50,318

-FAW Volkswagen             39,461

-Shanghai Volkswagen   38,420

-FAW Toyota                       35,972

-Shanghai GM                    33,047

YEAR TO DATE                  sales*

Car Maker

-SAIC-GM-Wuling               270,830

-FAW Volkswagen             232,322

-Shanghai Volkswagen    227,391

-Shanghai GM                    197,771

-Chery                                  170,472