BEIJING, Sept. 30 -- China's lottery ticket sales surged 53.6 percent year on year to about 52.96 billion yuan (about 7.38 billion U.S. dollars) in August, data from the Ministry of Finance showed.

Sales of lottery tickets to support the welfare system stood at approximately 18.64 billion yuan last month, an increase of 47.1 percent or 5.97 billion yuan compared to a year earlier, the data revealed.

Lottery ticket sales to support the sports industry increased by 57.4 percent year on year to 34.31 billion yuan, the ministry said.

Under China's lottery management rules, funds raised from ticket sales are used for administrative expenses and public welfare projects, and to fund prizes.