Sales in China's automotive sector rose by almost 14 per cent during September, providing encouragement for analysts looking for signs of a return to strong growth in the region.

Sales rose by 13.94 per cent in September in comparison to the previous month according to reports citing official state statistics in China Daily.

A total of 194,100 units were sold, as the world's fourth largest car market returned to its status as a key area of growth for the industry.

Recently statistics have pointed to a slowdown in the rapid rate of growth in China's automotive sector, but the latest figures have encouraged analysts.

Economist Xu Changming, based at a Chinese government think-tank, is quoted by Reuters as saying: "The domestic automobile market will become warmer during the fourth quarter of this year as tight government controls on car loans are expected to loosen and many Chinese families can afford to buy cars."

For the first nine months of this year car sales have now grown by more than 20 per cent in comparison to 2003 - with 1.7 million units sold up to September.