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ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Import automakers continued to see their sales climb upward during April, as they now have shown year-over-year growth for each month of 2010, according to the American International Automobile Dealers Association.

More specifically, international nameplates combined to sell 540,077 units in the U.S. during April, marking an 11.1-percent decrease from March, but an improvement of 22.1 percent from April 2009.

So far this year, imports have moved just under 1.95 million units, compared to roughly 1.68 million vehicles through the first four months of 2009.

Among the brand leaders in year-over-year gains during April were Subaru, whose sales climbed 48.2 percent from April 2009 and Infiniti, which enjoyed a 46.2-percent rise.

Volkswagen's sales were up 42 percent and Audi improved 32.9 percent.

The Nissan brand was also strong, as its sales climbed 33.8 percent. Land Rover's sales jumped 34.6 percent.

Of all the individual import brands, Toyota's sales were the highest at 139,080 vehicles sold for April. This marked an improvement of 23.8 percent year-over-year.

As far as market share, import brands commanded 55 percent of U.S. auto sales percent, while market share for domestics was at 45 percent.

In March, market share for imports was almost 57 percent, compared to 43 percent for the Big 3.

"The auto retail industry, and the international sector in particular, continues to show stable growth," stated Cody Lusk, AIADA president.

"Our dealers are reporting steady traffic not only from repeat buyers, but also shoppers new to international brands," he added. "International nameplate dealers have something for everyone on their lots — from value to safety to performance."