China raises export tax rebates

China said it has raised tax incentives on more than 600 export items, with some up to the maximum level possible, as it stepped up efforts to help businesses ride out the global economic slowdown.

From June 1, export tax rebates on products including shoes, toys and furniture have been lifted to between five and 17 percent, the finance ministry said in a statement posted on its website.

Exports such as sewing machines and air conditioners have been given the full tax rebate of 17 percent, while rebates on items like juice, furniture and toys have been raised to 15 percent, according to the statement.

The statement did not specify the original tax rebate level of these export items.

The export tax rebate scheme allows Chinese enterprises to get back part or all of the money they have paid in value-added tax, which stands at up to 17 percent, for items that have gone into the production of export goods.

Before the latest hike, China's average export tax rebate rate stood at 12.4 percent, up from 9.8 percent after six hikes since last year.

China's export machine -- a main growth driver over the past three decades -- was battered late last year as the financial crisis hurt overseas demand, causing thousands of plants to close and leaving millions jobless.

In April, exports fell 22.6 percent to 91.9 billion dollars from a year earlier in the sixth straight monthly decline, according to official data.