Vehicular sales in China soared more than 20 percent in October for the second consecutive month, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers said yesterday.

The deliveries of passenger cars and commercial vehicles surged 20.3 percent last month from a year earlier to 1.93 million units — the second month in a row for sales to expand around 20 percent.

The sales included 1.61 million passenger cars, which hit their second-highest level this year after rising 23.6 percent.

The robust sales pointed to a high season, the association said, although they were also partly the effect of a low base after Japanese carmakers saw sales plunge during the same period of last year amid the Diaoyu Islands dispute between the two countries.

The carmakers staged a huge turnaround last month, which included Honda sales soaring 211.6 percent and Nissan’s surging 128 percent.

The market’s strong rally lifted the combined sales in the past 10 months by 13.5 percent, up 0.8 percentage point from the September figure. The opening of the Guangzhou Motor Show next Thursday may drive up China’s car market.

Auto purchases are set to reach a new peak at the end of the year when price discounts are given, said Rao Da, secretary-general of China Passenger Car Association.