(Yicai) Nov. 18 -- Twenty-four of the 28 Chinese provincial-level regions that have already released related data have reported an increase in general public budget revenue, the sum total of tax and non-tax revenues, in the first three quarters.

The only two provinces that achieved double-digit growth in general public budget revenue were Xizang Autonomous Region and Jilin province, with increases of 14 percent and 11 percent, respectively, in the nine months ended Sept. 30 from a year earlier. The 22 other provinces reported growth of around 2 percent.

The slow expansion of local fiscal revenue was mainly due to two factors. On the one hand, the stable growth of the economy has laid a foundation for steady local revenue growth. On the other hand, challenges such as the sluggish real estate market, business difficulties, a weak producer price index, and tax and fee cuts also impacted fiscal revenue growth.

Resource-rich Qinghai, Shaanxi, and Shanxi provinces and Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region reported drops in general public budget revenue of 1.3 percent to 8.9 percent. Analysts believe that this was directly related to the decline in prices of bulk commodities, such as coal.

Xizang also reported the highest general public budget expenditure growth in the first three quarters, up 13 percent from a year earlier, followed by Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region and Shanghai at around 8 percent. In most provincial-level regions, the growth rates were below 3 percent.

In the first three quarters, the general public budget expenditures of the 28 provinces exceeded their revenues, with Sichuan reporting the largest gap of about CNY560 billion (USD78.7 billion).

Chinese local government’s general public budget revenue rose 1.8 percent to CNY9.3 trillion (USD1.3 trillion) in the first three quarters from a year earlier, according to data from the Ministry of Finance. However, their general public budget expenditure jumped 2.4 percent to CNY17.7 trillion (USD2.5 trillion) in the period.

In the low fiscal revenue and high fiscal expenditure environment, local government should focus more on the overall coordination of financial resources and budgets, said Li Jianjun, dean of the School of Public Finance and Taxation at Southwestern University of Finance and Economics.

Financial resources should be directed towards safeguarding basic livelihood needs and supporting major national and local strategic priorities, aiming to enhance financial resources and expenditures, thereby providing fiscal support for the stable development of the economy and society, Li noted.

Moreover, tax and fee collection management should emphasize compliance with laws and regulations to avoid negatively impacting market expectations, investment, and consumption, he pointed out, adding that there should be greater attention on revitalizing state-owned assets and resources.

Editor: Futura Costaglione