BEIJING - China's automobile industry has shown a growing trend with sales and exports of vehicles steadily increasing in the first half of this year (H1), according to data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) on Wednesday.

In the first six months, China's auto production reached about 13.89 million units, up 4.9 percent year-on-year, the data shows. In the meantime, auto sales stood at 14.05 million units, increasing 6.1 percent from the same period last year.

China's auto exports stood at around 2.79 million units in H1, surging by 30.5 percent year-on-year. The surge in exports contributed significantly to the overall growth of China's auto market during the period, the CAAM said.

In June alone, China's auto production and sales reached 2.51 million units and 2.55 million units, respectively, representing an increase of 5.7 percent and 5.6 percent from the previous month.

The month-on-month increase was partly thanks to a combination of factors such as the ongoing auto trade-in program and the releasing of new car models, the CAAM said.

Chinese brands have made a breakthrough as they are striving for growth in the domestic auto market. The market share of Chinese passenger car brands exceeded 60 percent by the end of June this year, according to the association.