China vehicle sales rise 8.8 percent in April

BEIJING (Reuters) - China's vehicle sales increased 8.8 percent year-on-year in April, an industry association said on Friday, as foreign automakers, including Ford Motor Co. (F.N), continue to cash in on local demand, despite the country's slowing economy.

China sold 2 million vehicles in the month in total, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers reported, led by an 11.6 percent year-on-year increase in cars to 1.6 million.

Ford said this week that sales at its Chinese joint ventures increased 29 percent in April, following a 28 percent year-on-year rise in March, and a 67 percent increase in February.

Japan's Toyota Motor Corp also said this week that sales by its two local joint-venture partners increased 12.4 percent in April.

China automobile sales reached 7.93 million in the first four months of the year, representing 9.1 percent growth over the same period last year, CAAM said.

But growth for the period was 4.1 percentage points lower than the first four months of last year.

CAAM has forecast the market will grow 8-10 percent this year, slowing from last year's 13.9 percent pace.

(Reporting By Matthew Miller; Editing by Nick Macfie)