Alibaba, JD.com Post Record Singles Day Sales

Chinese e-commerce behemoths Alibaba BABA and JD.com JD grossed over $68 billion in Singles Day sales Monday.

What Happened

Alibaba alone sold goods worth over $38.4 billion in total, surpassing the $30.8 billion it grossed last year by 26%, the company said in a statement.

The e-commerce giant crossed the $10-billion mark during the first 30 minutes of the sale.

Its main competitor JD.com reported sales of $29.17 billion during the holiday. Last year the company reached $23 billion in transaction volume.

The 24-hour Singles Day sale saw 1.3 billion orders being processed on Alibaba’s platform alone, with participation from more than 200,000 brands, the company said.

Apart from local vendors, sellers from Japan, the U.S., South Korea, Australia and Germany made the largest sales in terms of gross merchandise volume on Alibaba.

Why It Matters

The Nov. 11 sale was closely monitored by investors and market analysts, according to Bloomberg, who were looking for clues for the impact of China’s trade war with the U.S. on the country’s consumer market.

China’s economic growth slowed down to 6% in the third quarter that ended on Sept. 30, its lowest number in nearly 30 years, Fortune reported.

What’s Next

JD.com will announce its financial results for the third quarter on Friday, Nov. 15.

Alibaba reported 40% year-over-year quarterly revenue growth earlier this month.

Price Action

Alibaba shares closed Monday's session down 0.24% at $186.71, while JD.com shares closed down slightly at $33.21, gaining back 0.18% in the after-hours session. 

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