CHANGCHUN - China FAW Group Co Ltd, a leading automobile maker in the country, plans to sell around 4.1 million vehicles in 2022, growing at an annual rate of 17.1 percent, the company said Friday.

The company's operating revenue is expected to reach 770 billion yuan ($121 billion) this year, with annual growth of 8.9 percent.

In 2022, the automaker plans to channel between 3 and 3.5 percent of its operating revenue to research and development expenditure.

Last year, FAW Group sold a total of 3.5 million vehicles. Sales of its leading sedan brand Hongqi came in at 300,000 in the period, an increase of 50.1 percent year-on-year. Its truck subsidiary FAW Jiefang sold a total of 440,000 vehicles.

Chinese auto sales are likely to rise 5 percent year-on-year in 2022, with total sales reaching 27.5 million units, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) said.

While the impact of epidemic prevention and control measures on the market will gradually weaken, China's auto market will maintain growth in 2022 driven by huge demand potential, the gradual easing of chip shortages, and the strong demand for new energy vehicles, Fu Bingfeng, CAAM Executive Vice-President, told a press conference.

Founded in 1953 in the northeastern city of Changchun, the capital of Jilin province, FAW Group is considered the birthplace of China's auto industry.