Alibaba, JD smash Singles Day record with $139 billion of sales

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Alibaba, JD smash Singles Day record with $139 billion of sales and focus on ‘social responsibility’

• Alibaba and JD.com racked up around $139 billion of sales across their platforms on China’s Singles Day shopping event, setting a new record.
  
• The record sales come despite worries about the strength of the Chinese consumer and the impact of Beijing’s crackdown on technology companies.
  
• Singles Day was a slightly more muted affair as Chinese technology companies continue to face scrutiny from regulators and President Xi Jinping pushes for so-called “common prosperity.”
  

GUANGZHOU, China — Chinese e-commerce giants Alibaba and JD.com set new sales records across their platforms on Singles Day, the largest shopping event in the world.

Shares of JD were up about 4.6% in afternoon trade in Hong Kong on Friday while Alibaba was down about 1.8%.

The record sales come despite worries about the strength of the Chinese consumer and the impact of Beijing’s crackdown on technology companies.

While Singles Day, also called Double 11, used to just be a 24-hour flash sale type of affair, it has transformed into a multi-day extravaganza, ending at midnight on Nov. 11. JD began sales in late October while Alibaba started at the beginning of November. This extended period has helped the companies continue to grow sales.

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