Singles' Day is the world's biggest online sales event and last year netted Alibaba 168 billion yuan ($24.15 billion) in total sales.
Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd settled roughly 69 billion yuan ($9.92 billion) in the first hour of its annual Singles' Day on Sunday, up roughly 21 percent from last year's early haul of 57 billion yuan.
Singles' Day is the world's biggest online sales event and last year netted Alibaba 168 billion yuan ($24.15 billion) in total sales.
A disproportionately large number of sales are recorded in the first minutes of the 24-hour spending spree, when transactions are recorded for items that have been put on hold.
Alibaba kicks off the annual event with a gala, which this year featured U.S. singer Mariah Carey, a Japanese Beyonce impersonator and a shoe-shopping-themed Cirque du Soleil performance.
It's expected to be the company's final November sale event with founder and chairman Jack Ma at the helm. Current chief executive Daniel Zhang will take over as chairman next year, the company said in September.
While sales growth remains steady, Alibaba's stock has dropped 16 percent this year amid economic uncertainties linked to brewing trade tensions between China and the United States.
Earlier this month, Alibaba revised down its full-year revenue forecast, sending a chill through investors, as it said sales of big-ticket items would be impacted.
To compensate, the company will take in less income from its platforms in the near term in order to retain brands and new buyers, it said.
This year, Alibaba said there were around 180,000 brands participating in Singles' Day, and as of 10 a.m. on Sunday sales were close to $20 billion.
Below we have answered all your queries related to the Alibaba's Singles' Day sale.
What is Alibaba's Singles' Day sale?
Singles' Day is held on November 11. First celebrated in China, the trend is slowly picking up pace in rest of the Asia. The event began as a protest of sorts against Valentine’s Day, propelled by college students in the 1990s.
Alibaba's Singles' Day sale apparently is world's biggest sale even bigger than America's Black Friday and Cyber Monday combined. The sale is a one-day long event.
What's so special about it?
Alibaba's Singles' Day sale is just not an online sale fest. Alibaba’s Tmall hosts a national television gala on November 10 with a countdown to the midnight start of Singles' Day that gives the event a New Year’s Eve at Times Square feel. The show features international stars and historically captures an audience of 150 to 200 million viewers, according to Fortune.
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 "Alibaba Singles' Day sales hit $10 bln in first hour")
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