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Q1 automobile sales best since 2014

Mainland auto sales grew 7 percent in the first quarter, China's automakers association said on Tuesday. It said the strongest January-March period since 2014 set up the world's biggest auto market for a better-than-expected year. Many in the industry had feared that sales would be weak in the first three months, after the government rolled back a tax cut on small engine cars on Jan 1, contributing to expectations for a slowdown in 2017 sales. But first-quarter growth outpaced the China Association of Automobile Manufacturer's prediction in January that auto sales would grow 5 percent in 2017, and the market is expected to improve further as the year progresses. Vehicle sales rose 4 percent year-on-year in March to 2.5 million vehicles, the association told a news conference in Beijing. The purchase tax for cars with engines of 1.6 liters or below climbed to 7.5 percent this year from 5 percent in 2016, after the government stepped in to stimulate slumping sales.