Statistics provided by the Dandong Bureau of Finance show that, by the end of November, public finance budget revenue has reached 11.09 billion yuan ($1.77 billion), an increase of 20.3 percent year-on-year. Public finance budget expenditures, at the same time, totaled 16.1 billion yuan ($2.57 billion), up 17.8 percent from last year. Both revenue and expenditures exceeded last year's total.

As the world financial crisis spreads and the domestic economy faces greater downturn pressure, Dandong has managed to maintain stable economic development by adopting measures such as encouraging stable industrial economic operations, boosting harmonious county-level economic development, attracting investments and strengthening financial revenue collection. The tax revenue of the city was 1.7 percent higher than the provincial level on average, and financial revenue maintained steady and rapid growth.

The increase in financial revenue has been used on livelihood and development projects. Expenditures on people's livelihood reached 13.65 billion yuan, accounting for 85 percent of the total.

Among those expenditures, social security received 2.92 billion yuan, an 8.9 percent increase from last year; agriculture, forestry and water conservancies 1.72 billion yuan, a 28.1 percent increase; education 2.5 billion yuan, a 50.7 percent increase; medical treatment and public health 730 million yuan, a 15.3 percent increase; and urban and rural infrastructure and environment 2.69 billion yuan, a 17.2 percent increase.

The revenue has helped guarantee people's livelihoods and key development projects for the first 11-month period.

Edited by Zhao Qian and Michael Thai