BEIJING - Retail sales of new energy vehicles (NEVs) in China jumped 85.6 percent year-on-year in April, data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) showed Tuesday.

A new energy vehicle on display at a department store in Yantai, Shandong province. [PHOTO by TANG KE/FOR CHINA DAILY]

A total of 527,000 NEVs were sold in China last month, down 3.6 percent from March, according to the CPCA.

NEV sales of major domestic brands accounted for 70.5 percent of the total NEV sales in the country, the data revealed.

China exported 91,000 new energy passenger vehicles last month, jumping 1,028.5 percent year-on-year and up 29.4 percent from March.

In the first four months of the year, retail sales of NEVs in China rose 36 percent year-on-year to top 1.84 million units, the CPCA said.