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December 8, 2010 5:10 AM IST

China's SAIC says November auto sales up 26 pct

Top Chinese automaker SAIC Motor Corp Ltd (600104.SS) said vehicle sales in October were up 25.9 percent from a year earlier as people rushed to showrooms before government tax incentives expire at the end of the year.

A labourer is reflected in the glass of a Shanghai General Motors exhibition hall in Shanghai May 28, 2009. GM is facing imminent bankruptcy in the United States after bondholders rejected a debt-for-equity swap, a key part of the restructuring plan it needs to complete before a June 1 deadline imposed by the administration of President Barack Obama. Its China division, primarily two ventures with SAIC Motor, is profitable and self-sufficient, and able to fund its own daily operations and expansion, executives say.

SAIC, which has manufacturing joint ventures with General Motors Co (GM.N) and Volkswagen AG (VOWG.DE), sold 317,398 vehicles last month, it said in a statement to the Shanghai Stock Exchange.

Company data showed sales in October totalled 309,501 units, up 28.8 percent from a year earlier.

In 2009, Beijing offered tax incentives on purchases of cars with engine sizes of 1.6 litres or less, a move that helped China surpass the United States as the world's largest auto market that year.

In November, SAIC's venture with GM sold 106,457 vehicles, up 35.1 percent from a year earlier, while sales at its Volkswagen tie-up rose 52.3 percent to 99,255 units, the data showed.

Sales of SAIC's own-brand cars, including the popular Roewe 550, rose 77 percent to 14,870 units, the statement said.