BEIJING — China's 25 leading excavator makers sold a total of 235,693 excavators in 2019, up 15.9 percent year-on-year, data from the China Construction Machinery Association showed.

In breakdown, 209,077 excavators were sold in the domestic market, rising 13.4 percent year-on-year, while export of the equipment surged 39.4 percent to 26,616.

Sales of digging machines are an important indicator of the vitality of an economy as demand is usually backed by growth in mining and infrastructure development.

In 2018, China's excavator sales totaled 203,420, surging 45 percent year-on-year.