OTTAWA — The global auto industry is expected to see a banner year in 2011, and Canada will be among the main countries benefiting from rising demand for vehicles around the world, according to a report released Friday.

Scotia Economics said auto production in Canada will grow about 9% this year, to 2.3 million units. Much of that, however, will be concentrated in the early months, its report said.

Carlos Gomes, senior economist with Scotia Economics, said that gains seen in Canadian auto production will be about 30% in the first quarter of this year compared with the last quarter of 2010. That will represent growth of 22% in comparison to a year earlier, he said.

This puts the Canadian auto market on track for the highest rate of growth in North America during the early part of this year, the Scotia report said.

“We estimate that rising vehicle output will add roughly 1.5 percentage points to economic growth in Canada, significantly higher than the one percentage point contribution expected from the auto sector in both the United States and Mexico,” said Gomes.

Gomes said much of the growth in Canada will come from more production at a Chrysler facility in Brampton, Ont., which was being retooled late last year.

Overall, China is expected to lead gains in global auto production this year. The Scotia report predicted production there would amount to 21 million units this year, up 17% from last year and surpassing the combined output from Europe.

China’s production is anticipated to account for 28% of the global market this year, which Scotia Economics said is up from just 13% in 2008 and 4% 10 years ago.

Gomes said most auto-producing countries can expect year-over-year production gains in the double digits in the first half of this year. He added that almost every automaker, in their latest financial reports, boosted sales forecasts for this year and accelerated their production schedules for the early part of 2011.

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