BEIJING – FAW-Volkswagen Automobile Co., a Volkswagen AG joint venture in China, said last year's sales of Audi-branded automobiles in the country rose 25-percent to 100,888 vehicles, according to MarketWatch.

The increase is in line with the rise in overall passenger car sales in China's growing automobile market.

Audi is the first high-end brand in China to cross the 100,000-unit sales mark, the company said in a statement.

Sales of locally-made models reached more than 93,000 units. Sales of Audi A6L rose 19-percent on year to 73,404 units, while sales of Audi A4 rose 42-percent to 19,764 units.

Twice as many imported Audis were sold in 2007 than the year before, the statement said.

The joint venture sold 7,720 imports last year, including 3,401 units of the Audi A8L model, up 22.-percent on year, and 3,631 Audi Q7s and 688 Audi TTs.

Volkswagen sells the Audis in China through the joint venture with state-owned China FAW Group Corp. Last year, the joint venture sold 80,808 Audis.

Audi's sales increase is in line with the industry's performance. China's locally-made passenger car sales from January to November last year increased 24-percent from a year earlier, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.

Ralph Weyler, a director of Audi's board of management in charge of sales and marketing, said in 2006 the company hoped to boost annual sales in China to 200,000 units by 2015.