According to China’s Ministry of Finance, total sales from official lottery products in Mainland China during the month of September increased by 15.1 percent from the same time last year to approximately CNY36.93 billion (US$5.56 billion).

GGRAsia reports that last month’s recorded increase was aided by a 24.4 percent hike in Sports Lottery ticket sales, to CNY19.32 billion. In September, Welfare Lottery sales totaled CNY17.61 billion, which was a 6.5 percent rise from the same time last year.

Last month saw an increase in sales in all but 3 of the 31 cities and provinces in mainland China authorized for lottery ticket sales. According to the data from the ministry, Fujian province’s total lottery sales nearly doubled from the same time last year to approximately CNY1.90 billion. Lottery ticket sales in Guangdong province meanwhile, grew to CNY 3.91 billion, an increase of 21.6 percent year-on-year.

Through September this year, the two lottery systems combined sales amounted to CNY310.78 billion, an increase of 7.3 percent from the same time last year. Welfare Lottery sales saw an increase of 4.8 percent year-on-year to total about CNY158.61 billion, while sports lottery product sales saw a 9.9 percent hike to CNY151.67 billion, according to GGRAsia.

This year’s first nine months saw Guangdong remain as mainland China’s largest single-province market for lottery products, with lottery ticket sales in total reaching CNY30.64 billion for the period, an increase of 5.6 percent from the year prior. Following Guangdong was Jiangsu province, which saw CNY25.05 billion in total lottery ticket sales, a 5.5 percent hike from the same time last year.

According to the official data, ranking third was Shandong province in eastern China, where through the month of September, ticket sales of nearly CNY24.60 billion were seen, a 4.9 percent spike from a year earlier.