China's defence budget to rise 14.9pc in 2009

BEIJING (AFP) - China’s defence budget will rise 14.9pc in 2009, a government spokesman said on Wednesday, describing the increase as modest.
China’s defence budget for 2009 is 480.686 billion yuan ($70.2b), an increase of 62.482 billion yuan from 2008, the spokesman for China’s parliament, Li Zhaoxing, told reporters.