BEIJING, July 1 -- China's automobile manufacturing sector registered strong expansion in terms of revenue and profit during the first five months of the year, industry data showed.

The combined operating revenue of companies in the sector topped 3.63 trillion yuan (about 502.5 billion U.S. dollars), jumping 14.3 percent year on year, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.

The figure accounted for 7.1 percent of the total operating revenue of major industrial enterprises during the period.

In the first five months, the country's automobile manufacturers raked in total profits of 174.62 billion yuan, surging 24.3 percent from a year earlier, the data showed.