Mainland China’s official lottery sales were approximately RMB194.3 billion (US$29.3 billion) in the six months to June 30, up by 3.5 percent from the prior-year period, according to data from the country’s Ministry of Finance.
Welfare lottery sales declined by 0.5 percent year-on-year to reach nearly RMB102.3 billion in the first half of 2016, while sales of sports lottery products rose by 8.4 percent to about RMB92.0 billion, according to the official figures.
Guangdong province was mainland China’s biggest market for lottery products in the first half of 2016, with total lottery ticket sales reaching RMB19.9 billion in the period, up by 13.9 percent from a year earlier. Guangdong was followed by Shandong province in eastern China, where total lottery ticket sales were RMB15.7 billion, down by 1.1 percent year-on-year.
Jiangsu province was ranked third, with ticket sales reaching RMB15.5 billion in the six months to June 30, an increase of 2 percent from a year earlier, according to official data.
The data show that June 2016 saw sales of lottery tickets reach RMB34.0 billion, a jump of 20.8 percent from a year earlier.
Welfare lottery sales totalled RMB16.4 billion in June, up by 1.2 percent from the prior-year period, while sports lottery sales jumped 47.2 percent year-on-year to RMB17.6 billion, the ministry said.
Major international soccer championships – such as the Euro 2016 tournament that took place in France between June 10 and July 10 – typically boost sales of official sports lottery products in China.
