ROLLS-ROYCE Motor Cars had the highest sales in its 107-year history in 2011 as China became the super-luxury carmaker's biggest market for the first time.

Growth in all regions drove deliveries 31 percent higher to 3,538 cars in 2011, beating the previous record year of 1978 by 191 vehicles, London-based Rolls-Royce said in a statement yesterday.

The carmaker plans to continue expanding this year, as growth in Asia offsets "shaky" conditions in Europe, Chief Executive Officer Torsten Mueller-Oetvoes told Bloomberg Television.

China became Rolls-Royce's biggest market three years ahead of a target the company set in February. The country's car market is becoming more important for luxury carmakers. Competitor Bentley last week reported a 37 percent increase in cars delivered as its sales doubled in China in 2011, superseding the UK market for the first time in its 92-year history.

Rolls-Royce posted 30 percent growth in its home UK market, compared with Bentley's 5 percent increase there. The BMW unit's biggest gain was in the Asia-Pacific region, where deliveries climbed 47 percent, while those in North America and the Middle East grew 17 percent and 23 percent respectively.

"Given Bentley introduced new models in the last year, we have done very well," Mueller-Oetvoes said.