China's tax revenues grew 30.5 percent year-on-year to 3.26 trillion yuan (about US$472 billion) in the first half of 2008, the State Administration of Taxation (SAT) said on Tuesday.

SAT officials said the surge largely reflected a dramatic rise in company profits in 2007, which drove up corporate income tax receipts by 200 billion yuan in the first half.

Almost half of the tax revenue came from value-added, consumption and turnover taxes, which rose 22.4 percent, 18.5 percent and 25.7 percent year on year, respectively.

Import tariffs showed the fastest growth, rising 34.9 percent to 395.6 billion yuan, followed by stamp tax on securities trading, which rose 34.2 percent to 83.7 billion yuan.

Li Xiaochao, the National Bureau of Statistics' spokesman, said the tax rise would help China implement its fiscal policies and fund projects that would improve living standards, in spite of the global economic slowdown.

Qian Guanlin, deputy commissioner of the SAT, warned that tax revenues might not be so buoyant in the second half because of the slower world economy and the impact of the May 12 earthquake.

Qian added that measures including taxation analysis, strengthened tax collection and better taxation services should betaken during the second half.

(Xinhua News Agency July 23, 2008)