BEIJING -- China's auto sales rose 8.6 percent year-on-year to 2.25 million units in April, data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers showed Wednesday.

In the January-April period, the country's auto sales rose 51.8 percent year-on-year to 8.75 million units.

Last month, sales of passenger vehicles increased 10.8 percent year-on-year to 1.7 million units.

In the first four months, sales of passenger vehicles climbed 53.1 percent year-on-year to 6.79 million units.