Ministry of Finance: In February, a total of 34.313 billion yuan in lottery sales nationwide, a year-on-year decrease of 18%.

On March 27, the Ministry of Finance announced that in February, the total sales of lottery tickets nationwide were 34.313 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 7.541 billion yuan, a decrease of 18%. This was mainly due to the closure of the lottery market during the Spring Festival holiday in February this year. Among them, welfare lottery institutional sales were 12.144 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 2.688 billion yuan, a decrease of 18.1%; sports lottery institutional sales were 22.170 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 4.853 billion yuan, a decrease of 17.9%. The full text is as follows: National Lottery Sales Situation in February 2026 I. National Lottery Sales Situation In February, the total sales of lottery tickets nationwide were 34.313 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 7.541 billion yuan, a decrease of 18%. This was mainly due to the closure of the lottery market during the Spring Festival holiday in February this year. Among them, welfare lottery institutional sales were 12.144 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 2.688 billion yuan, a decrease of 18.1%; sports lottery institutional sales were 22.170 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 4.853 billion yuan, a decrease of 17.9%. Cumulatively from January to February, the total sales of lottery tickets nationwide were 89.559 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 0.815 billion yuan, a decrease of 0.9%. Among them, welfare lottery institutional sales were 29.954 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 2.120 billion yuan, a decrease of 6.6%; sports lottery institutional sales were 59.606 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 1.305 billion yuan, an increase of 2.2%. II. Sales Situation of Different Types of Lottery In February, sales of lottery tickets were 8.849 billion yuan for numerical lotteries, a decrease of 2.488 billion yuan year-on-year, a decrease of 21.9%; sales were 13.240 billion yuan for sports betting lotteries, a decrease of 4.392 billion yuan year-on-year, a decrease of 24.9%; sales were 10.258 billion yuan for instant lotteries, a decrease of 0.210 billion yuan year-on-year, a decrease of 2.0%; sales were 1.966 billion yuan for Keno lotteries, a decrease of 0.451 billion yuan year-on-year, a decrease of 18.6%. In February, sales of numerical, sports betting, instant, and Keno lotteries accounted for 25.8%, 38.6%, 29.9%, and 5.7% of total lottery sales respectively. Video lottery sales were 0.0035 billion yuan, an increase of 0.0025 billion yuan compared to the same period last year. Cumulatively from January to February, sales were 23.869 billion yuan for numerical lotteries, a decrease of 0.959 billion yuan year-on-year, a decrease of 3.9%; sales were 38.794 billion yuan for sports betting lotteries, an increase of 4.990 billion yuan year-on-year, an increase of 1.3%; sales were 21.428 billion yuan for instant lotteries, a decrease of 0.322 billion yuan year-on-year, a decrease of 1.5%; sales were 5.468 billion yuan for Keno lotteries, a decrease of 0.033 billion yuan year-on-year, a decrease of 0.6%. From January to February, sales of numerical, sports betting, instant, and Keno lotteries accounted for 26.7%, 43.3%, 23.9%, and 6.1% of total lottery sales respectively. Video lottery sales were 0.0089 billion yuan, an increase of 0.0063 billion yuan compared to the same period last year. III. Regional Lottery Sales Situation In February, compared to the same period last year, the sales of lottery tickets in all provinces nationwide decreased, with Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Guangdong, and Shaanxi experiencing the largest decreases, amounting to 8.1 billion yuan, 6.5 billion yuan, 6.3 billion yuan, and 4.7 billion yuan respectively. Cumulatively from January to February, compared to the same period last year, the sales of lottery tickets increased in 17 provinces nationwide, with Henan, Shandong, Guangdong, and Gansu experiencing the largest increases of 4.3 billion yuan, 2.8 billion yuan, 2.6 billion yuan, and 1.1 billion yuan respectively. The sales of lottery tickets decreased in 14 provinces, with Shaanxi, Chongqing, Zhejiang, and Anhui experiencing the largest decreases of 4.3 billion yuan, 3.7 billion yuan, 3.7 billion yuan, and 2.7 billion yuan respectively. Lottery institutions at all levels should closely track and analyze new situations and problems, strengthen the issuance and sales of lottery tickets, and ensure the stable operation of the market. Financial departments at all levels should further strengthen lottery supervision, actively create a good external environment, maintain market order, and promote the sustainable and healthy development of the lottery industry. This article is adapted from the "Official Website of the Ministry of Finance"; Editor: Huang Xiaodong.