Sales of passenger cars in China are set to touch the 11 million unit mark for 2009, according to the China Passenger Car Association

The association raised its forecast for the automobile industry this week on the back of a robust growth in vehicle sales in May - the fifth consecutive month sales have climbed this year.

The association says: “Automobiles sales in China will touch 11 million units this year, on the basis of the total number of vehicles sold across the country in the first five months.”China

The association released data showing that the market saw sales of  812,178 units of passenger vehicles, including minivans, sports utility vehicles, and multipurpose vehicles, in May - another monthly high.

Sales jumped by 54.7% year-on-year, and up a slight 1.2% April.

Total passenger car sales in the first five months jumped 29.6%, to 3.64 million units from the same period last year, says the association.

China also has, for the fifth consecutive month, topped the US as the world’s largest automobile market.

“The growth in the passenger car segment will probably continue in June to hit a new monthly record, which will boost the whole-year sales to the 11-million-unit mark,” says Rao Da, secretary-general of the association.

“Moreover, sales in the second half are traditionally much better than in the first six months in the automobile industry,” says Rao.

Ironically, GM - which filed for bankruptcy protection earlier this month - reported a monthly sales record in China in May. The automaker’s total vehicles sales in May surged by 75% year-on-year to 156,000 vehicles in China.

SOURCE: Autofile