BEIJING, Oct. 18 (Xinhua) -- China's excavator producers reported robust sales in September, sustaining the growth momentum of previous months, industry data showed.

China's 25 leading excavator makers sold about 26,000 excavators last month, up 64.8 percent year on year, according to the China Construction Machinery Association.

In breakdown, 22,598 excavators were sold in the domestic market, surging 71.4 percent year on year, while exports of the equipment rose 31.3 percent to 3,436.

During the first three quarters of the year, domestic excavator sales of the 25 producers jumped 33.2 percent from last year to 212,820, while overseas sales jumped 22.2 percent year on year to 23,688.

Top six excavator makers occupied about 75 percent of the market during the first nine months, up 1.5 percentage points from last year, according to estimates from the Zheshang Securities.

Excavator sales will likely to continue to boom in the fourth quarter. The whole-year sales are expected to rise over 30 percent year on year to exceed 310,000, the brokerage said, adding that the industry will be further consolidated with leading producers holding bigger market share.