Korea's tax revenue down 6.3% on-year in first 7 months

South Korea's tax revenue collected in the first seven months declined 6.3 percent from the previous year due to the economic slowdown, the finance ministry said Wednesday. South Korea collected 122.6 trillion won (US$114.1 billion) in tax revenue in the January-July period, down 8.3 trillion won from the previous year, the finance ministry said in a report to lawmakers. The reading accounted for 58.3 percent of the government's yearly target of tax collection, it added. In the same period of last year, the corresponding rate reached 64.5 percent. The government said that revenue from corporate taxes declined by 4.2 trillion won compared with a year earlier, amid the prolonged economic slowdown. Weak corporate earnings make it difficult for local firms to pay corporate tax and sluggish private spending curbs the collection of indirect taxes, which account for over 50 percent of Korea's state tax earnings. The government is ramping up its efforts to push for fair tax justice and expand the revenue base to help finance its massive fiscal and welfare spending. The state tax agency has been seeking to crack down on tax evasion and to regulate the underground economy as part of such efforts.