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UPDATE 1-European sales of gasoline-powered cars overtake diesel - ACEA

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By Libby George

LONDON, Sept 29 (Reuters) - Sales of gasoline-powered cars have overtaken diesel in the first half of this year for the first time since 2009, the European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA) said this week.

The shift, following revelations that most diesel cars emit more pollutants on the road than laboratory tests suggested, saw gasoline car sales rise by nearly 10 percent from the first half of 2016, compared with an approximate 4 percent drop in diesel car sales in the same period, the group said.

Sales of "alternative" vehicles - hybrid, electric, LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) and natural gas-powered ones - also rose by more than 35 percent to account for 5.2 percent of total car sales.

The mayors of Paris and Athens have said they plan to ban diesel-engine cars in city centres by 2025 in the wake of the emissions scandal, while France is also making plans to reverse favourable tax treatments for diesel. Some expect other European governments to follow suit.

Even car manufacturing centres Stuttgart and Munich have mulled diesel engine bans.

Volkswagen admitted in 2015 to cheating emissions tests.

ACEA, however, cautioned the shift to gasoline engines could make it tougher for Europe to meet CO2 reduction targets.

"Policy makers need to be aware that a sudden shift from diesel technology to petrol will lead to an increase in CO2 emissions," ACEA Secretary General Erik Jonnaert said.

(Additional reporting by Ron Bousso in London and Laurence Frost in Paris; Editing by Greg Mahlich and Mark Potter)

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