Beijing expects plunge in stamp tax haul

Beijing expects a drastic drop in what it will collect from the stamp duty on share sales this year, the South China Morning Post reported. A national budget report approved by the National People’s Congress last week said that China’s stock market would generate US$3.6 billion in stamp duty this year, down US$10.3 billion, or 74%, from what was collected in 2008. Analysts said the budget report suggests government concerns about the market’s health and a "thinly veiled intention" to further reduce the stamp duty. Beijing reduced the stamp duty on buying and selling stocks to 0.1% from 0.3% in April and scrapped the tax on buy-side deals in September. China collected US$13.9 billion in stamp duty last year, compared to a planned US$28.4 billion.