China's auto sales continued their strong growth in March, fueled by government incentives designed to boost domestic consumption.
Auto sales in China climbed 55.79% from a year earlier to about 1.74 million units in March, first quarter sales reached 4.61 million units, up 71.78% year on year, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) said. 

 
Passenger car sales rose 63.22% to more than 1.26 million units in March, bringing the quarterly sales figure to more than 3.52 million units, up 76.34%. 

 
The Chinese government slashed the sales tax on small cars to 5% from 10% last year in a bid to boost domestic consumption amid the economic slowdown. The policy is being partially retained in 2010, with the sales tax now at 7.5%. 

 
The CAAM also said China produced more than 1.73 million units of autos in March, up 57.69% year on year, taking first-quarter auto output to 4.55 million units, up 76.99% year on year.