Workers operate at the final assembly workshop of an automobile company in the new energy vehicle town of Jinhua City, east China's Zhejiang Province, Dec. 17, 2021. (Xinhua/Hu Xiaofei)

BEIJING, March 8 (Xinhua) -- Sales of new energy vehicles (NEVs) in China surged in February, driving the country's automotive market to accelerate its green transition, the China Passenger Car Association said on Tuesday.

Last month, a total of 272,000 NEVs were sold in China, soaring 180.5 percent year on year.

Chinese NEV manufacturers saw strong wholesale figures last month, with five recording wholesale figures above 10,000 units.

China's leading NEV manufacturer BYD saw wholesale figures soar to 87,473 units, and Tesla China followed with 56,515 units last month, according to the association.

The NEV market penetration rate stood at 21.8 percent last month, up from 9.6 percent during the same period last year, the association said.

China's NEV exports also remained strong. Tesla China exported 33,315 NEVs last month, and SAIC Motor exported 4,325 units.