China Lottery Sales Rise 27.3% as Sports Lottery Grows 73.1%
China’s lottery sales reached RMB67.389bn in September, up 27.3% year-on-year, driven by a 73.1% increase in sports lottery sales, according to the Ministry of Finance.
The increase represented an additional RMB15.325bn compared with the same month last year. However, performance varied across product categories, with sports lottery and keno sales increasing while instant and video lottery sales declined.
Sports Lottery Accounts for Largest September Share
Sports lottery sales reached RMB39.386bn, or US$5.87bn, in September, marking a 73.1% year-on-year increase. The category accounted for 58.4% of China’s total lottery sales during the month.
Sports lottery recorded substantially stronger growth than the overall market, with the Ministry of Finance referencing the World Cup in its reporting on the figures.
The September results highlight the category’s contribution to the monthly increase, although the figures for the wider market show differing trends across lottery products.
Keno Sales Increase as Instant Lottery Declines
Keno sales rose 19.5% year-on-year to RMB4.094bn, equivalent to US$609.9m. Despite the increase, growth remained below the rates recorded by sports lottery and the overall market.
Instant lottery sales fell 14.9% to RMB9.967bn, or US$1.49bn, while video lottery sales totalled RMB10m, equivalent to US$1.5m.
The Ministry of Finance’s figures show that the rise in overall lottery sales was not reflected across every product category, with instant and video lottery sales declining during the month.
Shandong Records Largest Provincial Increase
All provinces recorded year-on-year growth in lottery sales in September, with Shandong reporting the largest increase at RMB1.6bn, equivalent to US$238.4m.
Henan recorded the second-largest increase, at RMB1.43bn, or US$213.1m, followed by Zhejiang with RMB1.16bn, equivalent to US$172.8m.
Jiangsu recorded an increase of RMB1.05bn, or US$156.5m. These figures represent year-on-year increases rather than total monthly sales in each province.
Nine-Month Sports and Welfare Lottery Trends Diverge
China’s total lottery sales reached RMB545.82bn, equivalent to US$81.33bn, between January and September. This represented a 14.6% year-on-year increase, with sales rising by RMB69.683bn.
Sports lottery sales grew 25.7% over the nine-month period to RMB397.721bn, or US$59.26bn.
By contrast, welfare lottery sales fell 7.3% to RMB148.099bn, equivalent to US$22.07bn.
The figures show contrasting performance across the two main lottery categories, with sports lottery sales increasing while welfare lottery sales declined compared with the same period last year.
