BEIJING, March 11 (Xinhua) -- With both production and sales continuing to jump, the market of new energy vehicles (NEV) in China remained vigorous last month, a bright spot amid a lackluster automobile sector.

About 52,900 NEV cars were sold in February, up 53.6 percent year on year, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) said Monday. The production also saw rapid expansion, with an over-50-percent increase.

China has intensified efforts to promote the use of NEVs to ease pressure on the environment, offering tax exemptions and discounts on car purchases. The government also encouraged carmakers to build more NEV factories and improve technology.

For years, China has remained the world's largest NEV market, with around 1.26 million cars sold in 2018.

Monday's data also showed the broader automobile sector maintained the downward trend as total sales decreased 13.8 percent from a year ago and 37.4 percent from January. The production in February also declined.

Chen Shihua, an assistant to the secretary general of the CAAM, attributed the drops in part to the week-long Spring Festival holiday falling at the beginning of February.