Tax revenue stood at 500.7 billion yuan (US$60.3 billion) during the period, an administration official said.

Income from all major types of tax increased rapidly during the period, with value-added tax and business tax rising 20 percent to a combined 288.1 billion yuan (US$34.7 billion), said the official, who refused to be named.

Income tax revenue from Chinese companies, foreign-funded companies and foreign individuals rose a year-on-year 29 percent to 110.8 billion yuan (US$13.3 billion), he said.

Import tariff revenue jumped 70.2 percent during the period, while vehicle purchase tax revenue edged up 42.1 percent.

"The excellent tax revenue situation was mainly because of the country's sound economic development so far this year," the official said.

The growth rate of industrial output was much faster than last year, he said. Retail sales of consumer goods grew steadily and fixed-asset investment rose by a big margin. All of this formed a sound foundation for taxation, the official said.

The government's efforts to improve tax collection also helped, he said.

Zhang Peisen, a senior expert with the Taxation Research Institute, said China's economy will continue to grow at a higher rate in the remaining months of this year.

This will help China's tax revenue grow at a faster speed because the sound economic development is expected to contribute about 60 percent to total tax revenue this year, he said.

(China Daily April 18, 2003)