Auto sales in China rose 6.7 percent in 2008 from a year earlier, despite slackening sales on the global market, China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) said on Monday, but it was the first non-double digit growth for China's auto sales since 1999.

The growth rate was compared with an annual increase of 21.84 percent in 2007.

The sales totaled 9.38 million units last year in the world's second largest car market after the United States, the CAAM said.

The country's carmakers rolled out a total of 9.34 million motor vehicles last year, up 5.21 percent compared with 2007.

Both auto sales and production were below the prediction of 10 million units made at the beginning of last year.

(Xinhua News Agency January 12, 2009)