SYDNEY, Oct 18 (Reuters) - Australian sales of new vehicles rose to an all-time high in September with solid growth across all lines from sports utilities to commercial vehicles, data out on Tuesday showed.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics reported sales climbed 2.5 percent in September, from August when sales had been flat for the month. Seasonally adjusted sales of 100,640 were the highest on record.
Sales for the whole third quarter were up 1.5 percent on the previous quarter, implying consumer and business spending on cars made a useful contribution to economic growth.
The strength in September was broad based with sales of passenger vehicles rising 2.1 percent, SUV's 3.5 percent and other vehicles 1.5 percent.