Chinese shoppers spend $139 billion during Singles' Day fest

Chinese shoppers spent $139.1 billion during this year’s annual Singles’ Day shopping extravaganza, breaking last year’s record even though consumer spending slowed amid economic uncertainty during the coronavirus pandemic

BEIJING -- Chinese shoppers spent $139.1 billion during this year's annual Singles' Day shopping extravaganza, breaking last year's record even though spending slowed during the coronavirus pandemic.

Alibaba tallied 540.3 billion yuan ($84.5 billion) in spending over the festival that spanned Nov. 1 to Nov. 11, the company said Thursday, a growth of 14% compared to a nearly 93% increase last year.

Rival JD.com reported 349.1 billion yuan ($54.6 billion) in transactions this year, from Oct. 31 to Nov. 11, about a 28% increase compared to 32% growth in 2020.

The slowdown in growth for the world’s largest online shopping festival, which typically ends on Nov. 11, comes amid reduced marketing hype and a crackdown on the technology industry.