CHINA'S vehicle sales fell more than 1 percent in October, its first drop in five months, after demand for minivans reversed, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.

Domestic automakers sold a total of 1.52 million vehicles last month, a decline of 1.1 percent from the same month last year, CAAM said yesterday. In the first 10 months of this year, 15.2 million units were sold, an annual rise of 3.2 percent.

Sales for domestic and overseas automakers have been growing slowly in China this year after the government phased out incentives and tightened credit as it battled inflation. The week-long National Day holiday last month and a more stringent subsidy on fuel-efficient vehicles have also weakened market demand, CAAM said in a note.

Last month, passenger car sales rose 1.4 percent annually to 1.22 million units. Minivans slumped 18 percent while sedan deliveries gained 3 percent and sales of sport-utility vehicles surged 22 percent.

Sales of passenger cars equipped with up to a 1.6-liter engine fell 3 percent in October as buyers brought forward their purchases before a tighter subsidy scheme on fuel-efficient vehicles became effective.

Analysts predicted there will be more price discounts and promotions in the next two months as carmakers try to make up for the loss during the year-end sales season.

One upbeat segment was vehicle exports in October which saw 498,500 units of Chinese-branded vehicles shipped, taking up 41 percent of the total, or 1.2 percentage points higher from a month earlier, CAAM data showed.