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First quarter fall in overall sales

China's auto sales in the first quarter totaled 4.79 million units, a decrease of 3.4 percent from the same period of last year, according to the latest report from China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.

Passenger vehicle sales, including sedans, SUVs, MPVs and minivans, fell 1.3 percent in the first three months compared with a year ago to 3.77 million units. Sales of commercial vehicles dropped 11 percent to 1.02 million units in the period.