S. Korea's tax revenue falls in January-February

SEOUL, March 31 (Xinhua) -- South Korea's tax revenue fell for the first two months of this year on the back of the real estate market slump and the economic downturn, government data showed on Friday.

Tax revenue reached 54.2 trillion won (41.9 billion U.S. dollars) during the January-February period, down 15.7 trillion won (12 billion dollars) compared to the same period of last year, according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance.

Revenue from income taxes, including transfer and general income taxes, dropped 6 trillion won (4.6 billion dollars) due to the property market slowdown.

The number of home transactions tumbled 46.8 percent in December from a year earlier, while the reading for land trade plunged 47.6 percent in the same month.

Revenue from corporate taxes declined 700 billion won (540.7 million dollars) in the two-month period, and the tax collection from securities transactions reduced 800 billion won (618 million dollars).

The collection of value-added taxes diminished 5.9 trillion won (4.6 billion dollars) in the cited period.