China’s vehicles sales rose in October for the fifth consecutive month, an industry body said on Friday, underscoring continued growth momentum in the world’s largest auto market after a slower start to the year.
Overall sales totalled 2.70 million vehicles last month, up 2 % from a year ago, data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) showed. That took year-to-date sales to 22.9 million vehicles, up 4.1 % from the same period a year earlier.
In January, CAAM predicted sales would rise 5 % this year, slowing from 13.7 % in 2016, citing the scaling back of a tax incentive for small-engine vehicles as well as economic pressure.
Recent sales have been relatively strong – growing 5.7 % in September, 5.3 % in August, 6.2 % in July and 4.5 in June – underpinned by continued strong sales of sport-utility vehicles (SUVs), robust overall economic growth and increased incentives for buyers, market watchers said.
CAAM data showed sales of new energy vehicles (NEV) in October rose 106.7 % to 91,000 amid a government push to support the sector and shift away from traditional petrol engine cars in the long term.
NEV sales through October totalled 490,000 vehicles, up 45.4 % from a year earlier