China’s auto sales reversed 0.1% to 2.1 million units in May from a year ago to post a second straight month of decline this year, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM). “The sales decline is mainly due to the purchase tax for vehicles with engines below 1.6 liters being raised from 5% to 7.5% at the beginning of this year,” said Yang Jing, Shanghai-based Associate Director of the Asia-Pacific corporate research division at Fitch Ratings. China’s auto sales grew 3.7% to 11.18 million units in the first five months this year. Passenger car sales fell 2.6% year-on-year to 1.75 million units in May, slower than the 3.7% loss in April, CAAM said. The sport-utility vehicle (SUV) segment was the only one that grew, with sales surging 13.5% from a year ago to 714,800 units. Sales of sedans and multi-purpose vehicles (MPVs) fell 9.3% and 16.9% in May from a year ago to 838,700 and 149,700 units respectively, data from CAAM showed. Sales of new-energy vehicles reached 45,300 units in May, up 28.4% annually. The growth of new-energy vehicle (NEV) sales was powered by electric vehicles, with sales jumping sharply by 88% to 32,438 units in May.