China's Lottery Numbers Stumble Amid Coronavirus Outbreak

Coronavirus is continuing to harm China's gambling industry, as lottery sales for the month of January were down 43.3% when compared to the same period last year.

The month saw lottery sales of CNY27.2 billion during the month, down from CNY47.96 billion in 2019. The drop came from lower sales in provinces of Jiangsu, Guangdong, Shandong, Zhejiang, and Henan. The Chinese New Year celebration also negatively impacted the sales, as a lot of the state lottery was closed during the period.

Instant lottery sales were up 27.1% to CNY2.78 billion, but there was a drop in video lottery ticket sales to CNY2.65 billion. Keno sales were also down 7.8%.

The coronavirus has had major ramifications for Macau's betting numbers as well, with revenues down 88% in January due to the industry closing most resorts in order to help prevent the spread of the disease.