BEIJING -- Sales of Chinese car brands jumped 81.5 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of the year (Q1), continuing to gain a larger share in the domestic market, industry data showed.

More than 2.1 million Chinese-brand passenger cars were sold across the country in the period, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.

The market share of these brands accounted for 41.5 percent in the Chinese market during the period, up 1.4 percentage points from one year earlier.

In March alone, sales of Chinese brand passenger vehicles surged 71.4 percent year-on-year to 745,000 units, accounting for 39.8 percent of the domestic market.