March Car Sales Up 56 Percent in China

SHANGHAI, China — China's auto sales accelerated 56 percent to a three-month high in March, a jump that some auto dealers are attributing to discounting.

A total of 1.73 million vehicles were sold in China last month, with passenger cars surging 63 percent to 1.26 million units and commercial vehicles climbing 75 percent to 470,200 units, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.

First-quarter sales revved up 76 percent to 3.52 million units, the association said.

CAAM expects the domestic auto market to grow 15 percent this year.

But some dealers said the number of visitors to showrooms has started to reverse since March and new orders have declined, prompting them to offer price discounts to spur demand.

Analysts expect the growth in autos to slow this year as smaller tax incentives may weaken demand.

A report by CAAM showed sales of passenger vehicles with capacity of 1.6 liters or less accounted for 69 percent of the total passenger-car segment, 3 percentage points lower from a month earlier.

Inside Line says: The movement of the Chinese auto market is worth watching. — Vivian Jin, Correspondent