Europe's largest auto maker Volkswagen AG said Tuesday its sales in China rose 9 percent year on year to a record monthly high in March, buoyed by the country's overall strong demand for cars.

    New vehicles sold in China totaled 112,466 units in March, the first month of this year that saw sales exceeding 100,000 units, said the Volkswagen Group China in a statement.

    The group said its three major brands in China -- Volkswagen, Audi and Skoda -- all saw monthly record in sales in March.

    It said sales of new vehicles in the first quarter increased 6 percent year on year to 284,143 units.

    "The development of passenger car market in the first quarter has exceeded our expectations and we benefited successfully from the growth trend," said Winfried Vahland, president of Volkswagen Group China, in the statement.

    He said the company had raised its forecast for 2009 performance in China and would add 50,000 units to its annual production capacity.

    China's auto sales in March exceeded the United States, the world's biggest auto market, for the third consecutive month, due to government stimulus policies and tumbling U.S. car sales.

    Sales of domestically made motor vehicles set a new record of 1.11 million units in March, up 5 percent from a year earlier, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM).

    On Jan. 20, China halved the purchase tax on passenger cars to 5 percent for models with engine displacements of less than 1.6 liters.