China's fiscal revenue grew by 14.6 percent year-on-year during the first half of 2005, to 1.64 trillion yuan (US$202 billion), the Ministry of Finance said on Sunday.

Budget spending at central and local levels totaled 1.24 trillion yuan (US$153 billion) during the period, up 15 percent, the ministry said.

Central fiscal spending was up 1.5 percent, but central fiscal revenue rose 10.1 percent, while fiscal spending by local governments jumped by 20.9 percent and local fiscal revenue grew by 21 percent.

A ministry official blamed low central fiscal revenue to increased spending by central government on export tax rebates.

Central government paid 150.3 billion yuan (US$18.5 billion) in export tax rebates during the first six months of this year, 104.4 billion yuan (US$12.7 billion) more than the same period last year.
 
National fiscal revenue would have jumped 21.9 percent if central government had not paid the increased export tax rebates, and central fiscal revenue would have been increased 19.4 percent, the official said.

The official said key budget spending policies have been implemented at planned paces, including allocation of budget subsidies for grain production.  

Central government, through provincial governments, delivered 9.53 billion yuan (US$1.17 billion) in direct grain production subsidies to farmers across the country during the first half of the year, 77 percent of the 13.2 billion yuan (US$1.62 billion) planned for the whole year.

China began to offer subsidies directly to grain growers since last year in a bid to encourage farmers to grow more grain for domestic consumption.

(Xinhua News Agency July 25, 2005)