Auto Sales Surge in China as Economy Strengthens

Auto sales in China rose 63.6% in July from a year earlier to 1.09 million vehicles, the fifth straight month of more than one million vehicles sold, boosted by the domestic economic recovery and supportive government policies, a semiofficial auto-industry group said.

China's auto sales rose to 7.2 million vehicles in the first seven months of 2009, up 23.4% from the year-earlier period, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers said. It didn't provide year-earlier figures for comparison.

July is traditionally a slow time for auto sales, the association said.

Sales of passenger vehicles in July rose 70.5% from a year earlier to 832,600, and sales of commercial vehicles rose 44.2% to 253,000, it said.

The recovery of China's economy and Beijing's efforts to encourage small-car purchases have helped the country buck the global trend of auto sales, which have been hit hard by the financial crisis.

In the U.S., sales of cars and light trucks totaled 997,824 vehicles in July, according to Autodata Corp. While lower than China's figure, it was the highest monthly total since August 2008, spurred by uncertainty about the future of the U.S. government's "cash for clunkers" rebate program.

General Motors Corp. said earlier its sales in China surged 77.7% in July from a year earlier to 144,593 vehicles, a monthly record for the company's second-largest market.

Honda Motor Co.'s sales in China rose 14.9% in July to 50,647 vehicles. Sales of the company's City subcompact car, made by its joint venture with Guangzhou Automobile Group Co., rose 67.5% in July, and 59.1% in the first seven months this year, the statement said.

Sales of Honda's CRV sport-utility vehicle, made by its joint venture with Dongfeng Motor Corp., also were strong, rising 55.1% in July.

China's luxury-vehicle segment also expanded: Audi AG said its sales in China and Hong Kong rose 42.5% to 13,399 vehicles in July.

Views:0