New vehicle registrations in Hawaii rose 3.1 percent in the fourth quarter of 2010 over the fourth quarter of 2009, according to the Hawaii Auto Outlook report released this morning.

For all of 2010, there were 34,019 new vehicle registrations, a gain of just 380, or 1.1 percent, from 33,639 registrations in 2009.

Sales of automobiles and light trucks to consumers are forecast to grow 9 percent for the year, according to Pennsylvania-based Auto Outlook Inc., which prepares the quarterly reports for the Hawaii Automobile Dealers Association.