The auto purchasing spree on the mainland cooled down in February compared with January this year, as reflected in the month-on-month 27.2-percent dip in sales.

Figures from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) showed a total of 1.2115 million automobiles were sold in China in February. Analysts attributed the sales setback to the seven-day Spring Festival, which fell on February 13-19, when people stayed at home enjoying family get-togethers.

However, on the year-on-year basis February 2010 sales surged 46.25 percent, continuing to lead the global growth. China's auto sales nearly doubled those of the United States.

Domestic brand autos took up half of the market share, followed by Japanese autos which accounted for 19.8 percent of the Chinese market.

Xiong Chuanlin, Secretary General of CAAM, estimated China's auto sales will maintain their 10-15 percent annual growth through 2015, while the total sales volume will reach 16.5 million this year.