China holds a lackluster ‘Single’s Day’ shopping fest

China holds a lackluster ‘Single’s Day’ shopping fest

BEIJING: China yesterday held a subdued version of its annual “Single’s Day” shopping spree, shorn of the usual boasting on sales volume as the country’s chastened e-commerce sector kept a lower profile amid a government crackdown on platforms such as those operated by Alibaba. The world’s biggest shopping festival has for years been accompanied by aggressive promotions and breathless hourly updates by industry leader Alibaba detailing ever-rising sales figures equal to the annual GDP of many nations. But there were no rolling tallies nor triumphant comments by executives from major platforms on Thursday and the event was virtually ignored by state-controlled media, in an indication that feverish sales hype might be a thing of the past.

“Single’s Day”-so-called for its 11.11 date-began more than a decade ago and for years was a one-day, 24-hour event. But Alibaba and its rivals have expanded it to an extended promotion from November 1-11, and some retailers and platforms offer discounts, special offers and pre-sales as early as October. “Single’s Day” dwarfs the US “Black Friday” shopping rush and has become a barometer of consumer sentiment in the world’s second-largest economy. Platforms operated by Alibaba and its closest competitor JD.com reported combined sales of $115