China's automobile consumption market is expected to see sustained growth momentum in 2023 as the industry continues to embrace clean technology, the Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) said on Friday.

The country's overall economy is likely to pick up this year, and paired with the optimization of COVID-19 policies, will provide strong support for the steady increase in automobile consumption, said Shu Jueting, spokesperson of the ministry at a press conference.

Shu said a series of government policies have taken effect and have helped auto consumption rebound rapidly.

From July to November 2022, auto sales increased by 15.7% year on year, up 22.3 percentage points from the first half of the year. In the first 11 months of 2022, auto sales rose 3.3 percent year on year. Of those numbers, the sales volume of new energy vehicles doubled yearly, maintaining a rapid growth trend.

In the next step, MOFCOM will adopt measures in a multi-pronged approach with relevant departments, while continuing to stabilize and expand automobile consumption, by strengthening the supervision of the implementation of automobile consumption policy documents, Shu said.

Measures to be taken include increasing the circulation of second-hand cars, supporting the consumption of new energy vehicles, and promoting the scrapping and renewal of old and worn-out cars.