China running short of lottery tickets as youth try their luck amid shaky economy
- Lottery ticket sales have surged, with many stores running out, as young people seek a short cut to wealth amid China’s uneven post-pandemic economic recovery
Seeking a way to de-stress and have fun amid China’s economic doldrums, cross-border e-commerce sector worker Michelle Zhang bought scratch cards every weekend.
The 24-year-old had won as much as 500 yuan (US$68.3) from just a 20 yuan ticket, but recently found many dedicated lottery ticket stores in Guangzhou – a major southern city – had run out of stock.
In mid-June she visited three stores before finding any tickets, with the same scene replicated in the likes of Beijing and the well-off eastern provinces of Jiangsu and Zhejiang since April.
“When I wanted to buy it these days, many stores were out of stock,” she said.
Gambling in China is generally banned apart from the China Sports Lottery and China Welfare Lottery – both of which have traditional lotteries that involve selecting numbers and buying scratch cards – and throughout China, the gua gua le instant lottery scheme is seen by many young people as a short cut to wealth.
“When the economy slows down, the lottery may move forward,” Su Guojing, founder of the non-governmental trade organisation China Lottery Industry Salon, said in an interview with the website of state broadcaster CCTV.