(Yicai Global) April 29 -- China's top tax watchdog said today that the country's tax and fee cuts totaled CNY742.8 billion yuan (USD105 billion) in the first quarter of the year.

Of the total, the preferential tax and fee measures unveiled in 2020 to support economic development and the containment of the Covid-19 epidemic saved a total of CNY318.2 billion, Cai Zili, an official with the State Taxation Administration, told a press conference.

The remaining CNY424.6 billion of taxes and fees were reduced as a result of the implementation of a larger scale of tax and fee cut policies rolled out last year.

In Q1, authorities collected a total of CNY3.48 trillion in tax revenue after deducting export tax rebates, down 16.4 percent year on year.

The tax revenue drop was expected to narrow in Q2 as the resumption of life and production was accelerating, Cai said.

Since the outbreak of the epidemic, China has rolled out a slew of tax and fee relief measures to alleviate the burdens of market entities, especially small firms and self-employed businesses.