www.chinabus.org:  Chinese government is set to launch a pilot program in five cities subsidizing buyers of electric and hybrid auto vehicles, as part of the government's efforts to cut emissions in the world's largest auto market.

China's Ministry of Finance on Tuesday released details of the program that will be launched in Shanghai, Shenzhen, Hangzhou, Hefei and Changchun.

Buyers of plug-in hybrid cars will receive up to RMB 50,000 in subsidies, while those who buy fully electric cars will get up to RMB 60,000 in subsidies.

The Chinese auto market has an outstanding performance for the global auto industry in 2009 thanks to the government's stimulus measures to boost domestic consumption.

The country's vehicle sales may increase 13% to 15% to 16 million units because the government will continue to implement stimulus measures to boost domestic consumption, China Knowledge reported earlier.