Beijing - China on Friday said it made a surplus of more
than 1 billion yuan (146 million dollars) from hosting the 2008
Olympic Games despite spending far more than its original budget.
The Beijing Olympic Organizing Committee (BOCOG) had reported
income of 20.5 billion yuan (3 billion dollars) and expenditure of
19.3 billion yuan by March 15, leaving a provisional surplus of
nearly 1.2 billion yuan, the semi-official China News Service quoted
the National Audit Office as saying.
The auditors found 'no major problems of illegal or unauthorized
use of funds', the agency said.
The audit report said the Beijing Paralympic Games covered its
costs, with income adn expenditure both totalling 863 million yuan.
Sales of broadcasting rights, Olympic tickets and assets, plus
sponsorship provided most of the income.
Spending mostly covered the Olympic facilities, sports and
communication equipment, accommodation and medical services, the
report said.
Total costs reached 19.5 billion yuan for 102 projects related to
Olympic venues in Beijing and five other cities which hosted Olympic
events.
The spending included 11.8 billion yuan from central and local
governments, and 1.1 billion yuan donated by overseas Chinese, the
auditors said.
The income and expenditure figures, which may not include some
deferred costs of venue construction, were both far higher than those
reported immediately after last year's games.
Wei Zizhong, the former head of the Chinese Olympic Committee,
said last August that officials had underestimated some costs, such
as those for security, and had spent some 40 per cent more than the
budgeted 1.6 billion dollars.
Rising prices, especially for high-technology equipment, and
shifting currency exchange rates also affected the budget, said Wei,
who led the budget team for Beijing's bidding committee.
China also spent an estimated 40 billion dollars on infrastructure
and other projects to prepare Beijing for hosting the Olympics,
building several new subway lines and roads, and cleaning up the
city's notorious air pollution.
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