GM nearly doubled its sales in China during January, a record for the month

Sold 219,192 vehicles in China in January, up 97% from year earlier

By contrast, GM sold 146,215 vehicles in US in January, 14% increase from January 2009

Results followed Ford's joint venture in China, Changan Ford Sales Co.,, which sold 30,759 Ford vehicles in January

A 128% increase from a year ago though on much lower volumes

Automotive sales growth will come mostly from emerging markets such as Brazil, Russia, India and China, instead of US

China's total vehicle sales soared 45% last year to estimated 13.6M, overtaking US as world's biggest auto market

Sales in US aren't expected to get anywhere near range of 16M to 17M that had become standard before global economy went sour

Most analysts don't expect US auto market to hit 15M for next 4 or 5 years, but they see steadier growth in emerging markets

Demand in January was strong in nearly all market segments, said Kevin Wale, president and managing director of GM China, said in a statement

Sales in China by GM and its local partners rose 67% to record 1.8M vehicles in 2009 amid tax cuts and incentives

Despite its troubles over massive US recall, Toyota also saw sales climb in January, by 53% to 72K units