Chinese car ownership slows

Beijing: China, Asia's biggest auto market, said the number of privately owned vehicles rose at a slower pace last year as the cooling economy deterred drivers from buying new automobiles.

The number of vehicles and motorcycles owned by individuals rose 6.4 per cent last year to 129 million, the Ministry of Public Security said in a statement posted on its website yesterday.

The pace was 4.5 percentage points lower than in 2007, it added.

China's new car sales fell the most in three years in November, as slowing exports caused job losses and waning economic growth.

The slump is hitting domestic automakers as well as General Motors and Toyota, which are counting on emerging-market sales to offset slumping demand in Europe and The United States.