According to data released by the Ministry of Finance on Monday, China’s budget revenues for the first ten months of 2025 grew by 0.8% year-on-year, reaching nearly 18.65 trillion yuan (approximately $2.63 trillion USD).

During this period, the central government collected about 8.19 trillion yuan in tax revenues, down 0.8% compared to the same period last year, while local governments collected 10.46 trillion yuan, an increase of 2.1%.

China’s total tax revenues for the first ten months reached 15.34 trillion yuan, up 1.7% year-on-year. However, non-tax revenues declined by 3.1% to 3.31 trillion yuan over the same period, according to Xinhua.

Budget expenditures in China for the first ten months of 2025 rose by 2% year-on-year to 22.58 trillion yuan. Central government spending increased by 6.3%, while local government spending rose by 1.2%.

Education expenditures reached approximately 3.41 trillion yuan, up 4.7% year-on-year. Total spending on science and technology amounted to 784.7 billion yuan, an increase of 5.7%. Social security and employment expenditures for the period reached 3.77 trillion yuan, rising 9.3%. The national budget deficit stood at $555 billion. Overall spending in China grew 2% over ten months, despite a reduction in agricultural support.

Despite modest budget revenue growth and Moody’s 2024 forecast of 4.2% economic growth, official data show that China’s economy exceeded expectations in the first three quarters of 2025, expanding by 5.2%. This reflects investor optimism and indicates that China is on track to meet its annual growth target of “around 5%,” according to official figures.