China has imported 4.05 million vehicles since the country launched its reform and opening-up policy in 1978, xinhuanet.com said yesterday, citing a commerce ministry official.

China's upcoming auto industry stimulus plan will focus on the auto credit by supporting the auto financing company and it is likely to relax credit requirements to cut loan interest rates down to 6% from the previous 10%, Shanghai Securities News reported today.

GM China announced yesterday that General Motors sold 1,094,561 vehicles in China in 2008, up 6.1% from 2007. It is the first global automaker that sold over one million vehicles in China last year, xinhuanet.com said today.

Data from China's traffic authorities show that more than 147,000 Camry sedans made by GAC Toyota were registered for licenses in 2008. The China-made Camry topped the sedan registration rankings again after 2007, said sina.com today.

The Chinese government has finished drawing up policies to boost the steel and automobile industries, Premier Wen Jiabao said in Qingdao on Friday. The auto industry stimulus plan, which includes cuts in the vehicle purchase tax, may be launched next month, National Business Daily reported today.

Three British geology students of Imperial College London have been fined in China for "illegal survey and map-making activities", according to local media. In addition to making maps, the students were researching fault lines and earthquake activity in Xinjiang, which is a tense Muslim province to the west of the country, where anger against Chinese rule sparked deadly attacks in 2008.

Because of the Middle East chaos and the OPEC's plan to cut production, international oil prices have been rising lately. On Jan. 2, oil closed up 3.9% to $46.34 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. An energy expert has suggested that at this price China should speed up its oil reserves, said xinhuanet.com today.

Ford Credit has decided to stop offering loans to dealers and consumer in the Chinese market because of finance liquidity problems, the International Business Daily reported Tuesday.

China's top economic planning agency has completed the layout of a stimulus package to save the automotive industry and will implement the plan soon after the cabinet approves it, a report by sina.com said Wednesday.

China's Ministry of Commerce has decided to carry out an anti-dumping investigation into certain imported iron or steel fasteners from the European Community as of December 29, according to an announcement published on the Ministry's official website.

China's economic planning body is expected to roll out an auto industry rejuvenating plan as early as in the coming January, the Shanghai Securities News reported today, citing informed sources.

Though the troubled U.S. auto giants GM, Ford and Chrysler have closed down some of their vehicle and auto-parts plants, the Chinese ventures and agencies of the Big 3 said that the production halts in North America will not affect their components supply and auto export to China, state media reported today.