The Chinese government has revealed that its tax collections have risen by 22 per cent in 2006, an increase over the 20 per cent it collected in 2005.

According to the Chinese 'state administration of taxation', tax revenues totalled 3.8 billion yuan ($480 billion / Rs213,5520 crore).

As China's economy grows rapidly - it grew by 10 per cent in 2006, on the back of an export boom - the country has been strengthening its efforts to improve tax collections from private enterprises.

In November 2006, China's trade surplus rose to a record $22.9 billion, taking the year's total surplus to an all-time high $156.52 billion dwarfing the $102 billion for the whole of 2005.

This export growth has also strained relations with the EU and the US, which accuse China of keeping the yuan undervalued to make its products artificially cheap in international markets. In early November, China's foreign exchange reserves struck $1 trillion.