China's auto sales up nearly 3%

China's automobile sales hit 9.6 million units in the first half of 2012, up 2.93 percent year on year, data released on Wednesday by the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) showed.

Auto output during the period hit 9.53 million units, up 4.08 percent year on year, according to the CAAM data.

Sales of passenger vehicles reached 7.61 million units, up 7.1 percent, while production totalled 7.6 million units, up 7.9 percent. Sales and output of sports utility vehicles saw the fastest growth, surging more than 30 percent year on year.

However, sales of commercial vehicles slid 10.4 percent to 1.98 million units, while commercial vehicle output declined 8.6 percent to 1.93 million units, according to the data.

China's automobile industry boomed in 2009 and 2010. The nation overtook the United States to become the world's largest auto market in terms of sales in 2009. Sales continued to surge in 2010, jumping more than 32 percent to 18.06 million units.8 However, growth became more moderate last year, with a slowing economy and the expiration of policy incentives for car purchases. The CAAM said auto output and sales are not likely to rebound sharply in the short-term, as the Chinese economy still faces downward pressure.

The top 10 auto producers sold 8.45 million vehicles in the first half of 2012, up 4.5 percent. Their sales accounted for 88 percent of total sales, up 1.4 percentage points year on year, the data showed.

Some 3.15 million home-brand passenger vehicles were sold, down 0.2 percent. Their market share was reduced by 3 percentage points to 41.4 percent, in the face of strong competition from producers in Germany, Japan and the Republic of Korea, according to the CAAM.

The CAAM said sales of German and ROK passenger cars both grew more than 10 percent in the first six months in China, with their market share also rising.

The nation's vehicle exports in the first half year surged 28 percent to 487,900 units, the data showed.

The CAAM added that a total of 3,167 new-energy cars were produced during the period, 3,021 electric vehicles and 146 hybrid vehicles. Chinese purchased 3,525 new-energy vehicles, including 3,444 electric cars and 81 hybrids.