At China’s 13th National People’s Congress (NPC) meeting on March 5, the central and local government budgets were publicized. According to the report, the official budget for national defense for 2022 is 1.45 trillion yuan (US$229.5 billion), an annual increase of 7.1 percent. The official national defense spending for 2021 is $1.36 trillion (US$215.2 billion).
This year’s 7.1 percent growth is the highest since 2019, when the country’s spending grew at 7.5 percent. The increase in 2021 and 2020 were 6.8 percent and 6.6 percent respectively.
The increase in China’s military spending this year is higher than the official target of 5.5 percent in economic growth. In recent years, the targeted economic growth rates have been reduced year by year while the military spending has been rising at an increasing rate.
Source: Central News Agency (Taiwan), March 5, 2022
https://www.cna.com.tw/news/acn/202203050227.aspx