[C Finance]Ministry of Finance: Fiscal operations will be generally stable in 2024 and balance of revenue and expenditure can be achieved throughout the year – China Daily

China Daily, January 10 (Xinhua) This afternoon, the State Council Information Office held a series of press conferences on “China’s high-quality economic development results” to introduce the results of high-quality fiscal development. Liao Min, Vice Minister of Finance, said at the meeting that in 2024, the financial department will intensify the implementation of existing and incremental policies in accordance with the decisions and arrangements of the Party Central Committee and the State Council to promote economic stability and improvement and overall social stability.

First, fiscal operations are generally stable and budget execution is good. In terms of income,Since September 2024, with the implementation of a package of incremental policies and the stabilization of the macro-economy, the growth rate of fiscal revenue has turned positive that month. September, October, and November have improved month by month. December and full-year data are being summarized. middle.In terms of expenditure,The financial department has strengthened resource coordination and maintained expenditure intensity, and expenditures in key areas have been well protected. Overall, we can achieve a balance of payments throughout the year.

Second, policies are targeted to support stable and healthy economic and social development. To promote consumption,On the basis of implementing existing policies to expand domestic demand such as supporting county commercial construction, 150 billion yuan of super-long-term special government bond funds were specially arranged in the second half of the year to support the trade-in of consumer goods, especially to increase subsidies for scrapped cars and trade-in of home appliances, so that “Real money” goes directly to consumers.In terms of expanding investment,There are three investments expanded through bonds alone: ​​local government special bonds, which issued 4 trillion yuan throughout the year, including 3.9 trillion yuan added in 2024 and 100 billion yuan carried forward in 2023, and expanded investment areas and used as project capital The scope of financing; 1 trillion yuan of ultra-long-term special treasury bonds was issued, of which 700 billion yuan supported “dual-layer” construction; most of the funds for the additional treasury bonds issued in 2023 will be used in 2024 to support strengthening post-disaster recovery and reconstruction and improving disaster prevention Disaster reduction capabilities.In terms of protecting people’s livelihood,Continue to increase investment to support low- and middle-income and special groups. For example, the monthly minimum standard of basic pension for urban and rural residents has been raised, the policy of national scholarships and bursaries for college students has been further raised and expanded, and living subsidies have been provided to people in need, etc.In terms of cultivating new driving forces,We vigorously support technological innovation, promote high-quality development of manufacturing and modern service industries, accelerate the development of new productive forces, and promote industrial transformation and upgrading and the smooth conversion of old and new driving forces.

The third is to provide greater support to local governments to ease debt repayment pressure and enhance development momentum.In order to support local governments in resolving debt risks, the most powerful package of debt reduction plans in recent years has been formulated and implemented, with a total of 12 trillion yuan of policy funds allocated. According to reports, all the 2 trillion yuan replacement quota for 2024 has been issued on December 18. Relevant issuance work has been started for the 2 trillion yuan replacement bonds in 2025. Liao Min said that this replacement policy has achieved outstanding results in three aspects: First, the current liquidity pressure of local governments has been greatly reduced. Through the replacement, debt interest expenses have been greatly reduced, freeing up more space for local governments to support domestic demand. Second, debt transparency has been greatly increased. For the first time, the hidden debt balance was officially announced to be 14.3 trillion yuan. The original “dual-track” management of statutory debt and hidden debt has gradually shifted to standardized and transparent management of all debts. All walks of life at home and abroad, including major rating agencies and international organizations, have commented positively on this. Third, the synergy between risk prevention and development promotion has been greatly enhanced. With the systematic and overall progress of debt reduction work, local capital chains have been further unblocked, development momentum has been continuously enhanced, and the transformation from the previous “risk prevention” to “equal emphasis on risk prevention and development promotion” has been achieved. Many places have reported that this policy is very timely, and their burdens are lighter and they are more motivated.

Liao Min pointed out that in order to implement the spirit of the Political Bureau meeting of the Central Committee on September 26, a package of incremental policies was launched in 2024, which mainly includes four items: first, to increase support for local governments to resolve government debt risks, and second, to issue special government bonds to support large state-owned banks. Replenishing core tier-one capital, the third is to support and promote the real estate market to stop falling and stabilize, and the fourth is to increase support and guarantees for key groups. At present, most of them have been introduced and implemented, and two specific policy measures are being promoted intensively. One is the policy of special bonds to support the acquisition of existing commercial housing for affordable housing. We are cooperating with relevant industry authorities to study and refine relevant measures and arrangements; the other is the issuance of special government bonds to support large state-owned banks to replenish core tier one capital and enhance The ability of these banks to serve the real economy is currently being measured and detailed by the relevant banks, and plans to replenish capital will be implemented as soon as possible.

(Editors: Diao Yunjiao and Li Haipeng)

[Editor in charge: Diao Yunjiao]