Approximately 85 percent of the country's annual total gasoline consumption and 23 percent of diesel oil consumption were used by automobiles, industry figures show.

Last year China became the world's second largest market for new vehicles after the United States, with an annual output of 7.28 million and sales of 7.22 million.

About 4.46 million vehicles were produced in the first half of this year, up 22.4 percent on the same period last year, while vehicle sales rose 23.3 percent to 4.37 million, according to figures from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.

Output and sales are both expected to hit a record 8.5 million this year, analysts predicted.

Also Saturday, Qin Huanming, vice general manager of the Changchun-based China First Automobile Works Group Corp., said at the auto fair that China still has a huge potential for car consumption and car sales may reach 10 million by 2010.

Meanwhile, he said that automakers and urban administrators should have to find ways to ease the huge pressure on cities in terms of road safety and environment protection while the auto market is developing at a high speed.

Earlier this month, the mayor of southern Chinese booming city of Shenzhen, Xu Zongheng, urged his 11 million residents to stop buying cars in a bid to ease worsening traffic and pollution problems.

The city now reports more than one million cars, with 90,000 new cars registered already this year.

Xu said that people were buying vehicles "too quickly."

"Problems arising from the city's traffic are mounting. I hope residents take this into consideration when planning to buy cars. And about 70 percent of the city's air pollution is caused by exhaust fumes," he said.

The Fifth China Changchun International Automobile Fair opened Friday in the capital of northeast China's Jilin Province, with about 100 auto companies from home and abroad displaying 132 brands of vehicles.

International automakers including Volkswagen, Audi and General Motors, as well as major Chinese auto companies such as China First Automobile Works (FAW ) Group Corp., will attend the 10-day event, organizers said.

Concept cars, trucks, buses, special purpose vehicles and vehicles for military use will be on display at the fair, which occupies an exhibition area of 140,000 square meters.

The international automobile fair is a biennial event which was first held in 1999.