BEIJING -- China's automobile manufacturing industry registered steady expansion in the first eight months of this year, industry data showed.

The industrial added-value of the sector surged 11.7 percent year-on-year during the period, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.

Combined operating revenue of the industry came in at 6.17 trillion yuan ($859.39 billion), soaring 10.9 percent from the same period last year.

Companies in the sector raked in a total profit of 303.59 billion yuan in the same period, up 2.4 percent over one year earlier, the data revealed.