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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| China Singles' Day sales near $4bn in first hour | China Singles' Day sales near $4bn in first hour |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| China's Alibaba has made more than $3.9bn (£2.bn) in sales in the first hour of Singles' Day in China, the world's biggest online shopping event. | China's Alibaba has made more than $3.9bn (£2.bn) in sales in the first hour of Singles' Day in China, the world's biggest online shopping event. |
| The figure is almost double the $2bn spent in the same time period of the retail giant's sales event last year. | The figure is almost double the $2bn spent in the same time period of the retail giant's sales event last year. |
| Singles' Day, also known as "Double Eleven" because its held on 11 November, has become a major annual event for Chinese retailers. | |
| Alibaba said more than $1bn was spent within the first eight minutes. | |
| Read more: Why China's big brands are cashing in on singles | Read more: Why China's big brands are cashing in on singles |
| In the latest update on its news website Alizila, the company said that its gross merchandise volume (GMV) had hit $6.5bn. | |
| That is already more than half the record amount of $9.3bn in sales it made last year, putting it on track to create new record. | |
| In comparison, sales on Cyber Monday, which is the biggest online shopping day in the US, hit $1.35bn, according to ComScore. | |
| 'Power of Chinese consumption' | 'Power of Chinese consumption' |
| Singles Day has grown tremendously since it was started by Alibaba in 2009, and now includes many retailers such as rivals JD.com that stage sales promotions. | Singles Day has grown tremendously since it was started by Alibaba in 2009, and now includes many retailers such as rivals JD.com that stage sales promotions. |
| This year the tech giant said there will be over 40,000 merchants and 30,000 brands from 25 countries selling goods on its platforms. | |
| About 130 million users have already visited its marketplace app Taobao, which exceeds the peak from last year. | |
| Alibaba chief executive Daniel Zhang said over the course of the 24-hour shopping marathon, consumers would have "a new surprise every hour", especially targeting mobile users. | |
| The site said more than 27 million purchases came via mobile phone in the first hour. | |
| "The whole world will witness the power of Chinese consumption this November 11," Mr Zhang said in a statement. | |
| In the lead up to the event, the firm hosted a four-hour TV variety show featuring Chinese celebrities and Western entertainers such as British actor Daniel Craig of James Bond fame. | |
| It also included an appearance by American actor Kevin Spacey, appearing as his character President Frank Underwood from the Netflix series House of Cards. | |
| He wished Chinese shoppers a "happy Singles day" in a two minute video. | |
| Massive scale | |
| Alibaba accounts for more than 80% of China's internet sales market. | |
| It predicts that 1.7 million couriers, 400,000 vehicles and 200 planes will be making deliveries of products that range from electronics goods to cosmetics despite slowing growth in China. | |
| Economists will be looking for clues about domestic consumption in Wednesday's sales as the world's second-biggest economy heads for its slowest growth in nearly a quarter of a century. | Economists will be looking for clues about domestic consumption in Wednesday's sales as the world's second-biggest economy heads for its slowest growth in nearly a quarter of a century. |