BEIJING - The number of automobiles in China has surged to 100 million due to a rapid increase in private car ownership, according to a statement released Friday by the Ministry of Public Security.

China registered 219 million motor vehicles as of the end of August, with automobiles accounting for 45.88 percent, the statement said. The ministry separates motor vehicles into four categories: motorcycles, tractors, trucks and automobiles.

The statement said that from 2006 to 2010, the country posted an average annual growth of 9.51 million automobiles.

The first eight months of this year saw 9.83 million new automobiles hit the country's roads, 79.45 percent of which were passenger cars, according to the statement.

China's major cities have had to deal with recurring gridlock and other traffic-related issues in recent years, as China is now the world's largest auto market. Several cities have tightened automobile purchase policies in an effort to combat traffic jams.

Beijing created a car-quota system on January 1, allowing only 240,000 new cars to be registered in the city this year.