BEIJING, Feb. 27 (Xinhua) -- China's lottery ticket sales reached 30.82 billion yuan (about 4.87 billion U.S. dollars) last month, down 13.8 percent year on year, data from the Ministry of Finance showed.
Sales of lottery tickets to support the welfare system totaled 13.98 billion yuan in January, down 8.1 percent year on year.
Lottery tickets sold to support the sports industry stood at 16.84 billion yuan, down 18 percent from a year earlier, according to the ministry.
Under China's lottery management rules, funds raised from ticket sales are used for administrative expenses, public welfare projects, and to fund prizes. ■
