Lunar new year celebrations are being blamed for a double-digit decline in China’s lottery sales in January.

Figures released by China’s Ministry of Finance show lottery sales falling 10.7% to RMB 29.16b (US $4.24b) in January. Welfare lottery sales were off 10.6% to RMB 19.15b and sports lottery sales fell 10.8% to RMB 12.5b.

The Ministry blamed the decline on the timing of the New Year holiday, which began in late January. Only five of China’s 31 provinces posted year-on-year sales increases, while sales in Guangdong province, which ranked highest in lottery sales in 2016, declined by 17.4%.

Meanwhile, erstwhile online sports lottery operator 500.com says it failed to generate a single yuan from lottery sales in 2016. The company’s fortunes have been reeling ever since China ordered the ‘temporary’ suspension of online lottery sales in March 2015 after uncovering rampant corruption at provincial lottery administration centers.