In March this year, production and sales of automotive vehicles in China amounted to 2.2017 million units and 2.1691 million units, up by 34.4 percent and 35.8 percent month on month respectively, as stated by the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM). In the whole first quarter, production and sales of automotive vehicles in China totaled 5.8917 million units and 5.9223 million units, up by 9.16 percent and 9.18 percent year on year respectively.
In particular, the output and sales volumes of passenger vehicles in China in March this year totaled 1.7483 million units and 1.7101 million units, increasing by 30.5 percent and 30.3 percent month on month respectively, while up 5.5 percent and 7.9 percent year on year. In the January-March quarter, the output and sales volumes of passenger vehicles in China totaled 4.7987 million units and 4.8695 million units, up 9.5 percent and 10.1 percent year on year respectively.
As for commercial vehicles, domestic output and sales in March this year amounted to 453,400 units and 459,000 units, up 5.9 percent and 2.1 percent year on year, while increasing by 51.8 percent and 61.5 percent on month-on-month basis, respectively. In the first quarter, domestic output and sales of commercial vehicles in China amounted to 1.0929 million units and 1.0528 million units, up 7.8 percent and 5.1 percent year on year.
Meanwhile, also in March, China's auto export volume amounted to 85,500 units, up 59.2 percent month on month and decreasing by 0.6 percent year on year, including 48,500 passenger vehicles and 37,000 commercial vehicles, up 58.6 percent and 59.9 percent, both on month-on-month basis, while down 7.4 percent and up 10.1 percent year on year. In the first quarter of the year, China's auto export volume totaled 209,000 units, down 7.8 percent year on year.
According to Chinese customs, in February of the current year China's auto import volume had amounted to 86,600 units, up 42.1 percent, and the country's auto export volume had totaled 42,100 units, down 33.7 percent, while in the January-February period China's auto import volume and auto export volume amounted to 197,600 units and 130,700 units, up 50.3 percent and down 10.2 percent, respectively, all year on year.