Record $12b spent by Alibaba shoppers halfway through China’s biggest sales day

Photo credit: Pexels.

We’re halfway through China’s Singles Day, the world’s biggest shopfest, and all records are being smashed. Shoppers on Alibaba’s marketplaces have spent US$11.9 billion at noon, according to data from the nation’s biggest ecommerce company. That averages out at a billion bucks per hour.

The first hour saw US$5 billion spent as people stayed up past midnight to grab hefty discounts. Sales are slowing during work hours, but a bump is expected once people get home.

Last year’s Singles Day saw a grand total of US$14.3 billion spent by Alibaba’s customers, so the new tally could double by the time midnight rolls round.

Alibaba founder Jack Ma (right) looked happy as he watched Singles Day kick off early this morning. Photo credit: Alibaba.

Virtually all of China’s shopping apps and websites have a day of sales, but only Alibaba is releasing real-time data on how much people are spending.

Converted from Chinese yuan. Rate: US$1 = RMB 6.8.

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from Tech in Asia https://www.techinasia.com/china-singles-day-record-12-billion-dollars-spent-midday
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