(Yicai Global) July 14 -- SAIC Motor Corporation Ltd. [SHA:600104] topped a 10 best-selling passenger vehicles (PV) with sales totaling 1,744,900 units in China, followed by SAIC-GM and FAW-Volkswagen in second and third places respectively, per market data from the China Passenger Cars Association (CPCA).  

The top three brands remained unchanged in June, but SAIC-GM overtook FAW-Volkswagen as the second most popular PV manufacturer in the list. Dongfeng Honda rose from fifth to fourth place. SAIC-GM-Wuling and Geely also saw further sales increases last month.

Dongfeng Honda replaced Great Wall in 10th place, knocking the Hebei-based automaker off the top 10 list for the first time this year.

The significant rebound in PV sales is mainly attributable to poor results in May and a spike in PV retail figures toward the end of last month, the CPCA said. The high monthly growth rate is largely driven by a 12 percent jump in PV sales in the final week.

"Joint venture brands outperformed last month, and American, Japanese and German brands all posted sales growth above 10 percent, indicating a noticeable recovery in the medium- to high-end market segment," the CPCA said.

Given the fact that July is typically an off season for the automobile market, the association estimates that PV sales growth will see a dip next month.