Shares of Chongqing Changan Automobile Co., Ltd (Changan), one of the renowned carmakers in China, closed lower Thursday at 12.49 yuan (1.83 U.S. dollars), down 1.65 percent, than the previous close despite its report of soaring vehicle sales in the first two months.

In a statement to the Shenzhen Stock Exchange earlier in the day, the Chongqing-headquartered company said its vehicle sales volume in February rose 74 percent to 159,060 units. Sales for the first two months of this year jumped 98 percent to 357,439 units.

The increase in sales was driven by the country's car boom, according to the statement. Changan, a partner of Ford Motor Co. and Mazda Motor Corp. in China, has yet to issue its 2009 annual business report.