Chery Automobile Co, China's biggest domestic automaker, said its car sales stood at 320,000 units in the first 11 months of 2008, down 8.9 percent from a year earlier.

The sales volume means the automaker is unlikely to fulfill its 480,000-unit sales target mapped out at the beginning of the year. It planned to sell 300,000 units at home and 180,000 units abroad.

The drop in sales was contributed to the decreasing demand around the global market triggered by the expanding financial crisis.

Due to the weakening demand, most automakers in the country

(China Daily December 30, 2008)