Korea’s national tax revenue grew more than 8 percent on-year in 2011 as a better-than-expected economic recovery led to expanded collections of income and corporate taxes, the Finance Ministry said Friday.

The country’s national tax revenue came to 192.4 trillion won ($171.8 billion) last year, up 8.3 percent from 177.7 trillion won in the previous year, the ministry said in a press release. It is slightly lower than the 192.8 trillion won projected in September.

Income tax jumped 12.9 percent on-year to 42.3 trillion won, while corporate tax revenue rose 20.4 percent over the same period to 44.9 trillion won. The hikes are attributed to the better-than-expected economic recovery.

Value-added taxes came to 51.9 trillion won, up 5.7 percent from a year earlier. Tariff income gained 3 percent to 11 trillion won, while transportation taxes fell 17.4 percent to 11.6 trillion won, the ministry said.

Meanwhile, the country’s total income, including non-tax revenue, amounted to 270.5 trillion won last year, which was 2.4 percent higher than the projection reflected in its 2011 budget, a separate report showed. The government expenditures came to 258.9 trillion won. 

(Yonhap News)