Guangdong posts 16 pct H1 fiscal revenue growth

Guangdong Province, south China's economic powerhouse, posted fiscal revenue growth of 16 percent year on year on the back of booming business taxes and land transfer fees in the real estate sector, according to a government report.

The figure is double the 7.5-percent fiscal revenue growth reported by the entire country in the first half of the year.

The province's total fiscal revenue stood at 348 billion yuan (56.4 billion U.S. dollars) in the first six months, according to a government mid-year budget implementation report submitted to the provincial legislature for review on Monday.

The growth was mainly due to the increase in business taxes and land transfer fees in the real estate sector, according to the report.

The business taxes from the real estate industry in the first six months reached 26.5 billion yuan, up 45 percent year on year. Land transfer fees hit 117.5 billion yuan in the same period, up 85 percent year on year.

China's fiscal revenue growth decelerated to 7.5 percent in the first half due to a continuous economic slowdown and the country's structural tax reforms.

Total fiscal revenue stood at 6.86 trillion yuan in the first six months, according to data released by the Ministry of Finance in mid-July.