BEIJING - CAR sales in China fell more than 10 per cent in November as the global financial crisis eroded consumer confidence, state media reported.

The number of passenger vehicles sold in November dropped to 522,800 - a 10.3 per cent year-on-year decline, the official Xinhua news agency reported late on Friday, quoting the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.

The slump, which ended a small sales rebound in October, was attributed to weak consumer confidence as China's economy slowed in the face of the global crisis, Xinhua said.

Economic growth in the world's most populous nation slipped to 9.0 percent in the third quarter of the year, its slowest pace in five years.

The World Bank has predicted China's growth will slow further in 2009, rising by just 7.5 per cent, the lowest level in 19 years.