US auto giant General Motors said Friday it sold a record 230,048 vehicles in China last month with demand strong for smaller, fuel-efficient cars.
The result marked a 67.9 percent year-on-year increase and was the 15th straight monthly sales record for GM in China, the world’s biggest and fastest growing auto market.
“We have seen particularly strong interest in GM’s newest passenger car models, the Chevrolet Cruze, Chevrolet New Sail and Buick Excelle XT,” said Kevin Wale, managing director of GM China Group.
“This is a clear indicator that many consumers across the country — especially first-time car buyers — are placing smaller, more fuel-efficient products at the top of their shopping lists.”
Sales in the first quarter by GM and its joint ventures reached 623,546 units, up 71.4 percent from the same period last year, the company said in a statement.
China’s auto sales overtook those of the United States for the first time last year to become the world’s biggest auto market.
Sales have been driven by government incentives such as lower taxes on cars with engines smaller than 1.6 litres and subsidies for clean-technology vehicles. Most of those measures have been extended into 2010.
GM said demand for small cars was particularly strong, with Chevrolet sales soaring 151.5 percent on-year to 46,139 units in March.
Shanghai GM, the company’s flagship joint venture with China’s largest automaker SAIC Motor, sold 86,967 vehicles last month, an increase of 88.8 percent from the same month last year.
Sales at SAIC-GM-Wuling, a mini-commercial vehicle joint venture with SAIC and Liuzhou Wuling Automobile, grew 42.6 percent on-year to 129,489 vehicles.
FAW-GM Light Duty Commercial Vehicle, a tie-up with China’s FAW Group launched in August, sold 13,200 vehicles in March.
