BEIJING, June 9 (Xinhua) -- China's new-energy vehicle (NEV) sales expanded 60.2 percent year on year to 717,000 units in May, data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers revealed Friday.

 

The output of NEVs in the country reached 713,000 units last month, up 53 percent year on year, the data shows.

 

The NEV market share in China reached 30.1 percent in May.

 

In the first five months, NEV sales increased by 46.8 percent from a year ago to 2.94 million units, and NEV output totaled over 3 million units, increasing by 45.1 percent year on year.

 

During the same period, the NEV exports soared 160 percent to 457,000 units, the data shows.

 

As a front-runner in NEV consumption, China continued to roll out supportive policies to sustain the development of its NEV market -- particularly in its vast rural areas.

 

Last month, China released a guideline to support people living in rural areas in purchasing and using NEVs, with a focus on boosting the construction of charging infrastructure.