SHENZHEN - Leading Chinese new energy vehicle (NEV) maker BYD sold 73,172 NEVs in the first quarter of 2019, up 146.9 percent compared with the same period last year.

The strong growth was primarily fueled by the sales surge in the pure electric passenger vehicles, soaring 755.8 percent to 45,487 units. Sales of plug-in hybrid electric passenger vehicles rose 11 percent to 25,745 units, the Shenzhen-based company said in a statement filed to the Shenzhen Stock Exchange late Monday.

In March alone, its NEV sales totaled 30,075 units, up 115.6 percent from a year earlier.

Sales of its gasoline-powered vehicles in the first quarter declined 45.9 percent to 44,406 units, with sales in March falling 42.7 percent to 16,750 units, it said.

Bucking the downward trend in the broader Chinese auto market, sales of NEVs soared last year, seeing a 61.74 percent year-on-year growth to 1.26 million units, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.