The Ministry of Finance recently held a press conference, releasing the national fiscal revenue and expenditure data for the first quarter. The figures indicate a stable growth in fiscal revenue and proactive advancement in expenditure, marking a positive start to the fiscal year.
Revenue growth accelerated during the period. Data shows that in Q1, national general public budget revenue reached 6.1613 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 2.4%. Wang Jianxun, Director of the Treasury Payment Center at the Ministry of Finance, noted that this 2.4% growth rate is 1.7 percentage points higher than the combined figure for January and February, and exceeds the levels of the same period in the past three years. This reflects a strong and favorable beginning for China's economic operation in the initial year of the 15th Five-Year Plan period.
In terms of tax revenue, national tax income totaled 4.8505 trillion yuan in Q1, up 2.2% year-on-year. This includes domestic value-added tax (VAT) of 2.1473 trillion yuan, growing 4.9%; VAT and consumption tax on imported goods amounting to 458.8 billion yuan, rising 12.9%; and VAT rebates and consumption tax refunds for exported goods reaching 791.1 billion yuan, increasing 4.8%. Yang Zhiyong, President of the Chinese Academy of Fiscal Sciences, stated that as the largest tax category, the 4.9% growth in domestic VAT primarily resulted from steady development in related industries and improvements in industrial producer prices, concretely reflecting the robust economic start in Q1. He added that strong momentum in foreign trade imports also contributed to the growth in VAT and consumption tax on imported goods.
On the expenditure side, fiscal outlays were deployed proactively. Data reveals that national general public budget expenditure reached 7.4706 trillion yuan in Q1, a 2.6% year-on-year increase, with the expenditure pace being the fastest in nearly five years. According to Yang Zhiyong, the expansion in scale and acceleration in pace of fiscal expenditure during the quarter are both powerful manifestations of implementing a more proactive fiscal policy this year. A faster expenditure pace can enhance the effectiveness of the same spending scale.
Breaking down specific expenditure categories, spending on health reached 655.4 billion yuan in Q1, up 12.1% year-on-year; expenditure on social security and employment was 1.4785 trillion yuan, growing 9%; and urban and rural community expenditure amounted to 553.3 billion yuan, increasing 2.8%. Wang Jianxun explained that the rapid growth in health expenditure was mainly due to concentrated disbursements of childcare subsidies and increased subsidies to basic medical insurance funds. Yang Zhiyong commented that these figures fully demonstrate the positive role of fiscal expenditure in safeguarding and improving people's livelihoods, with strong support provided to key livelihood areas in Q1.
Government bond issuance scale expanded. Within the fiscal policy toolkit, government bonds, including treasury bonds, ultra-long-term special treasury bonds, and local government special bonds, are important components. Data shows that in Q1, treasury bond issuance exceeded 3.6 trillion yuan, a nearly 10% year-on-year increase. Qu Fuguo, Deputy Director of the Debt Management Department at the Ministry of Finance, stated that the increased scale of treasury bond issuance in Q1 provided strong support for continuing to implement a more proactive fiscal policy, with investors actively subscribing. Additionally, the issuance of this year's ultra-long-term special treasury bonds commenced in April and will be completed by October.
Regarding newly added local government special bonds, a total of 1.1599 trillion yuan was issued nationwide in Q1, a 20.8% year-on-year increase. Qu Fuguo noted that these funds are primarily used for projects in key areas such as social services, transportation infrastructure, affordable housing, and urban renewal, as well as for supplementing government-managed fund revenues and supporting the clearance of government arrears to enterprises. For special bonds used to replace existing implicit debt, 960.4 billion yuan was issued nationwide in Q1, completing 48% of the annual quota of 2 trillion yuan, with 590.4 billion yuan in special bond funds disbursed, effectively supporting local governments in replacing existing implicit debt.
Multiple fiscal policies focused on stimulating domestic demand. In Q1, several fiscal measures were implemented to support building a strong domestic market, including launching a package of fiscal and financial coordination policies to boost domestic demand and conducting pilot programs for prize-linked invoices. During the quarter, newly issued loans to small and medium-sized enterprises, equipment renewal loans, loans to service industry entities, and personal consumption loans collectively exceeded 8.8 trillion yuan, a 4.2% year-on-year increase. Specifically, newly issued loans to service industry entities surpassed 3.1 trillion yuan, up 6.2%, and newly issued personal consumption loans approached 5.4 trillion yuan, growing 2.5%. Li Nan, Deputy Director of the Financial Department at the Ministry of Finance, stated that based on Q1 execution, the overall progress of the fiscal-financial coordination package for stimulating domestic demand aligns with expectations, and policy effects are gradually materializing, cumulatively benefiting 2.71 million business entities and 54.19 million resident consumers.
Simultaneously, focusing on supporting consumption revitalization, this year's arrangements include allocating 250 billion yuan from ultra-long-term special treasury bonds to support consumer goods trade-ins, with optimized support scope, subsidy standards, and implementation mechanisms. Wu Gai, Deputy Director of the Economic Construction Department at the Ministry of Finance, mentioned that the Ministry of Finance has already allocated a total of 125 billion yuan in ultra-long-term special treasury bond funds in two batches. Fiscal resources have also actively supported pilot programs for prize-linked invoices. As of last week, 50 pilot cities had distributed bonuses totaling 3.68 billion yuan, driving sales in related sectors by approximately 160 billion yuan, with cumulative participation reaching 410 million person-times and 170 million person-times winning prizes.
Furthermore, the Ministry of Finance, in collaboration with the Ministry of Commerce, has deepened pilot work on two fronts: fostering new consumption formats, models, and scenarios, and building an internationalized consumption environment. Wu Gai added that the next steps involve working with relevant departments to ensure policy implementation, strengthen fund supervision, better cultivate a consumption atmosphere, unleash consumption potential, and promote the qualitative improvement and expansion of consumption.