BEIJING — China's fiscal revenue increased 3.3 percent year-on-year to around 15.07 trillion yuan (about $2.13 trillion) in the first nine months of 2019, official data showed on Oct 17.

As the effect of tax and fee cuts continues to kick in, tax revenue has been on a falling streak since May, said Liu Jinyun, a senior official with the Ministry of Finance (MOF), at a press conference on Oct 17.

The central government collected about 7.2 trillion yuan during the period, up 3.5 percent year-on-year, while local governments saw revenue go up 3.1 percent to about 7.86 trillion yuan, according to the MOF.

Specifically, revenue from domestic value-added tax in the period increased 4.2 percent from one year earlier to about 4.93 trillion yuan, while that from domestic consumption tax surged 15.8 percent to 1.14 trillion yuan.

Meanwhile, revenue from individual income tax plummeted 29.7 percent year-on-year to 798.1 billion yuan in the period. Revenue from value-added tax and consumption tax on imported goods dropped 8.1 percent to 1.21 trillion yuan, while that from tariffs declined 3 percent, according to the ministry.

China's fiscal spending expanded 9.4 percent year-on-year to around 17.86 trillion yuan during the January-September period, MOF data showed.

The central government spent a total of 2.51 trillion yuan in the first nine months, up 9.2 percent from the same period last year, while local governments' spending grew 9.4 percent year-on-year to 15.35 trillion yuan.

Expenditure on energy conservation and environmental protection boasted the fastest growth pace in the period, up 14.5 percent year-on-year, the ministry said.

China will maintain a proactive fiscal policy stance in 2019, with a higher deficit-to-GDP ratio to leave policy space to address potential risks.