Sales of China's domestically made automobiles topped 1.14 million units in June, up 36.48 percent over the figure a year earlier, the fourth month in a row surpassing the 1.1 million units mark, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) said Thursday.

Sales of China's domestically manufactured vehicles stood at 6.099 million units in the first half of this year, up 17.69 percent over the figure a year earlier, according to the CAAM, adding that both the auto sale and production figures in the first six months had set a half-year record high.

China produced 5.99 million automobiles in the January-June period, up 15.22 percent year on year.

The association attributed the increases to a series of government stimulus measures to boost domestic consumption.

China in January halved the purchase tax on passenger cars to 5 percent for models with engine displacements of less than 1.6 liters, a move to shore up the domestic auto consumption.

The CAAM figures showed that passenger vehicle sales volume rose 25.62 percent year on year from January to June to 4.53 million units, and the passenger vehicle production volume increased 20.96 percent year on year to 4.42 million units in the first six months.

The association said it was "cautiously optimistic" about the auto sales on the domestic market in the second half of this year, predicting that China was expected to sell more than 11 million vehicles in 2009, higher than earlier prediction of 10.2 million vehicles.

Zhu Yiping, CAAM's assistant secretary general, said that China's industrialization and urbanization continued acceleration despite the adverse effects of the economic slowdown.

"The government's restructuring and stimulus plans for the automobile industry had also greatly promoted the development of the industry," Zhu said.

China unveiled a 4-trillion-yuan (585 billion U.S. dollars) stimulus package last November and 10 specific industry stimulus plans for autos, iron and steel, petrochemicals and other sectors this year to shore up the Chinese economy.

Chinese auto makers reported a 6.7-percent sales rise year on year of 9.38 million units in 2008.

(Xinhua News Agency July 9, 2009)