BEIJING, July 17 (Xinhua) -- China saw steady tax revenue in the first half of this year, the taxation authority said Tuesday.

A total of 8.2 trillion yuan (1.2 trillion U.S. dollars) were collected in the first six months of this year excluding export tax rebates, up 15.3 percent year on year, data from the State Administration of Taxation (SAT) showed.

Both the industrial and service sectors posted robust tax revenue growth, up 14.7 percent and 13.2 percent year on year respectively in H1 and maintaining double-digit growth for six quarters.

Emerging sectors continued to expand fast, with that revenue from the software and information technology sub-sector growing 29.3 percent year on year.

Tax revenue in the retail sector rose 20.5 percent year on year in H1, indicating strong consumption momentum. The accommodation and catering sector also saw its tax revenue growth up by 8.6 percent, SAT data showed.

Gross domestic product expanded 6.8 percent year on year, above the government's annual growth target of around 6.5 percent, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed Monday.