Speakers:
Mr. Wang Dongwei, vice minister of finance
Mr. Lin Zechang, director general of the Comprehensive Department of the Ministry of Finance (MOF)
Mr. Wang Jianfan, director general of the Budget Department of the MOF
Mr. Fu Jinling, director general of the Department of Economic Construction of the MOF
Chairperson:
Ms. Xing Huina, deputy director general of the Press Bureau of the State Council Information Office (SCIO) and spokesperson of the SCIO
Date:
July 31, 2024
Xing Huina:
Ladies and gentlemen, good morning. Welcome to this press conference held by the State Council Information Office (SCIO), as part of the series "Promoting High-Quality Development." Today, we have invited Mr. Wang Dongwei, vice minister of finance, to brief you on relevant developments and answer your questions. Also present today are Mr. Lin Zechang, director general of the Comprehensive Department of the Ministry of Finance (MOF); Mr. Wang Jianfan, director general of the Budget Department of the MOF; and Mr. Fu Jinling, director general of the Department of Economic Construction of the MOF.
Now, I'll give the floor to Mr. Wang for his introduction.
Wang Dongwei:
Ladies and gentlemen, good morning. I am delighted to meet with you here to introduce how the MOF promotes high-quality development.
First, on behalf of the MOF, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude for your long-term concern, support and assistance regarding our financial work.
General Secretary Xi Jinping has emphasized that pursuing high-quality development is our top priority in the new era. In recent years, the MOF has focused on this main goal of high-quality development by continuously optimizing financial policy, ensuring funding for strategic tasks, strengthening fiscal and taxation systems, and deepening international financial cooperation to pursue higher-quality economic growth and appropriately increase economic output. Here, I will introduce four key areas.
First, we have strengthened and improved macroeconomic regulation. We have implemented proactive fiscal policies, and utilized a combination of tools such as deficits, special-purpose bonds, financial subsidies, interest discounts, and tax measures to promote sustained economic recovery and growth. On the one hand, we have optimized and improved tax and fee reduction policies to help reduce the economic burden on businesses and enhance their growth potential. This year, we have further improved the precision and effectiveness of these policies, with a focus on supporting technological innovation and manufacturing development. On the other hand, we have prudently determined the deficit rate and effectively used special-purpose bonds for local governments and treasury bonds to provide necessary support for economic and social development. Since the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC), we have allocated an additional 11.35 trillion yuan in special-purpose bonds to support around 90,000 projects aimed at addressing weaknesses and improving people's well-being, thereby encouraging increased effective social investment. Last year, we issued an additional 1 trillion yuan in treasury bonds, with most projects now already underway. This year, we have allocated 1 trillion yuan in ultra-long-term treasury bonds to support the implementation of major national strategies, enhance security capabilities in key areas, and facilitate a new round of large-scale equipment upgrades and consumer goods trade-in programs. Meanwhile, we have also strengthened the coordination between fiscal, monetary and industrial policies to better leverage their effectiveness.
Second, we have focused on strengthening financial support for major national strategic tasks and essential public welfare by increasing investment in key areas such as science and technology, education, agriculture and rural development, and ecological protection. We aim to enhance high-quality development. We have diligently implemented the requirement that Party and government departments must run on lean budgets, being thrifty with small expenses and generous with significant ones, allocating more financial resources toward promoting development and safeguarding public welfare. In this year's budget, the top four areas of fiscal expenditure are education, social security and employment, agriculture, forestry and water resources, and health, accounting for nearly 50% of the total. Additionally, we have strongly supported greater self-reliance and strength in science and technology, significantly enhancing our country's innovation capacity, with our national innovation index ranking steadily rising to 10th globally. The level of public welfare continues to improve, with the minimum subsistence allowance for rural areas increasing by 73.3% since 2017, and the minimum subsistence allowance for urban areas rising by 45.4% on average. Basic old-age insurance covers nearly 1.1 billion people, and over 1.3 billion people are enrolled in medical insurance. The environmental sustainability of our economic development has continuously improved. Over the past decade, we have supported an average annual economic growth rate of 6.1%, with an average annual energy consumption growth rate of 3.3%. Since the 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-2020) period, the average PM2.5 concentration in cities at the prefecture level and above has decreased by 28.6%, and the proportion of surface water bodies with water quality rated "good" nationwide has increased by 21.6 percentage points. We can say that the skies are bluer, the mountains are greener, and the waters are clearer.
Third, we have focused on building a high-standard socialist market economy. We have continued to deepen reform of the fiscal and tax systems, aiming to inject vitality and boost momentum for high-quality development. The reform of the budget system has deepened comprehensively. The efficiency of fiscal resource allocation and the effectiveness of fund use have improved constantly. The sound tax system has been established. The system taxing personal income on the basis of both adjusted gross income and specific types of income has been optimized and refined. Reforms on value-added, consumption, resource, and environmental taxes have continued to advance. These efforts have accelerated the formation of a unified national market and facilitated economic transformation and upgrading. The fiscal relationship between the central and local governments has continued to improve. The system of transfer payments has operated more soundly, and incentive and constraint mechanisms through transfer payments have been set up to boost high-quality development. From 2022 to 2024, the central government transfer payments to local governments totaled approximately 30 trillion yuan, propelling coordinated regional development and ensuring equal access to basic public services.
Fourth, we have promoted alignment with high-standard international economic and trade rules, deeply engaged in global economic governance, and continuously promoted high-standard opening up. China's overall tariff level currently stands at 7.3%, lower than the 9.8% WTO accession commitment. We have applied lower temporary import tariff rates to about 1,000 products and implemented preferential conventional tariff rates with 32 countries and regions. This approach benefits our people with quality products and allows the global community to share opportunities created by China's development. We have implemented "zero tariff" and offshore duty-free shopping policies in Hainan province to boost openness. We have also pursued the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative, and the Global Civilization Initiative. Furthermore, we have actively participated in multilateral mechanisms such as the G20 and BRICS and promoted high-quality Belt and Road cooperation.
Moving forward, the MOF will fully implement the guiding principles from the 20th CPC National Congress, as well as the second and third plenary sessions of the 20th CPC Central Committee. We will also earnestly implement the deployments made at the meeting of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee held on July 30. Our focus will be on continuously enhancing macro-fiscal control, deepening reform of the fiscal and tax systems, and improving the efficiency of fiscal governance. These efforts aim to maximize our financial sector's contribution to building a great country and moving toward national rejuvenation on all fronts.
Thank you for your attention. My colleagues and I are now ready to take your questions.
Xing Huina:
Before asking your question, please raise your hand and identify your news agency.
