China Fiscal Spending Up 1.3% in Jan-Jul

China's general public budget expenditure increased 1.3% year-on-year to CNY 16.29 trillion in the first seven months of 2026. Central government expenditure rose 6.2% to CNY 2.48 trillion, while local government spending increased 0.5% to CNY 13.81 trillion, indicating that fiscal support continued to be led by the central government. Among major spending categories, healthcare recorded the strongest growth, rising 9.8%, followed by social security and employment (+7%), debt interest payments (+5.2%), science and technology (+1.5%), and education (+0.7%). Meanwhile, expenditure declined on energy conservation and environmental protection (-11.9%), agriculture, forestry and water conservancy (-6.8%), culture, tourism, sports and media (-6.9%), transportation (-2.5%), and urban and rural communities (-2.9%).

China's fiscal spending increased 1.5% year-on-year to CNY 14.33 trillion in the first half of 2026. Central government expenditure rose 6.5% to CNY 2.12 trillion, while local government spending increased 0.6% to CNY 12.21 trillion, indicating that fiscal support continued to be led by the central government. Among major spending categories, healthcare recorded the strongest growth, rising 10.8%, followed by social security and employment (+7.6%), debt interest payments (+4.5%), science and technology (+1.3%), and education (+0.6%). Meanwhile, expenditure declined on energy conservation and environmental protection (-10.3%), agriculture, forestry and water conservancy (-8.6%), culture, tourism, sports and media (-6.4%), transportation (-2.6%), and urban and rural communities (-2.0%).

China’s fiscal spending increased 0.8% year-on-year to CNY 11.39 trillion (USD 1.59 trillion) in the first five months of 2026. Central government expenditure rose 6.5% to CNY 1.68 trillion, while local government spending edged down 0.1% to CNY 9.71 trillion, indicating that fiscal support remained largely driven by the central government. Among major spending categories, healthcare outlays recorded the strongest growth, rising 11.3%, followed by social security and employment (+6.3%), debt interest payments (+5.1%), and science and technology (+0.9%). Meanwhile, expenditure declined on agriculture, forestry and water conservancy (-11.2%), energy conservation and environmental protection (-8.8%), culture, tourism, sports and media (-7.8%), transportation (-3.8%), urban and rural communities (-2.5%), and education (-0.5%).