STOCKHOLM - Volvo Cars has reported a year-on-year global sales growth of 5.5 percent in May, according to the company's press release on Wednesday.

The automaker sold 42,107 cars globally in May. This marks the 12th consecutive months of sales growth.

Sales of the new model Volvo XC90 were the main growth driver globally, while the XC60 continues to be the best-selling model overall.

China was Volvo's biggest market in May, where 7,045 cars were sold, up slightly compared with the same month last year. The best-selling cars in China were the locally produced Volvo XC60 and S60L models.

Elsewhere, the United States reported a sales increase of 10.2 percent compared with the same month last year, and sales in Europe as a whole was up 3.3 percent.

Volvo, which was acquired by Chinese automaker Geely in 2010, employs nearly 29,000 people worldwide.