Ford China sales up 44% in 2009

Ford Motors sold 440,619 vehicles in China last year, up 44 percent compared with 306,306 units sold in 2008, the company said in a statement released Thursday.

The US car maker expects the Chinese market to grow 8 percent this year in anticipation that a government stimulus package will continue to lure consumers.

Ford, which competes with General Motors and other carmakers, produces cars in China in a joint venture with Changan Auto and Mazda Motor.

Changan Ford Mazda sold 316,139 units in 2009, up 54.5 percent from a year earlier.

Due to government incentives aimed at bolstering domestic demand, vehicle sales in China increased in 2009 to become the world's auto largest market.

Agencies and Shi Jierui contributed to this story