China's government spending will rise this year, the nation's Minister of Finance said, as authorities look for ways to bolster domestic demand and help the world's second-largest economy regain momentum.
"We will make sure the overall size of fiscal spending increases, to play a better role in stimulating domestic demand," Finance Minister Lan Fo'an told the People's Daily.
Lan also told the newspaper that the size of the country's budget deficit will be maintained at a "certain level" in 2024 and added that authorities will continue to set an "appropriate" quota for new special local government bonds, a key source of infrastructure investment.
That way, overall government spending will increase and "play a better role in stimulating domestic demand."
To help cash-strapped local authorities meet basic spending needs, Lan said the central government will continue transferring funds to them with poorer areas receiving preference.
He also said officials would roll out some tax cuts focusing on support for technological innovation and manufacturing development.
In other news, Fosun Tourism (1992) said sales of Club Med China jumped by 1.54 times year-on-year to surpass pre-Covid levels over the New Year holidays.
