Alibaba Singles' day racks up $1 bn in sales in two minutes

Jack Ma is using the event as a testing ground for his plans to revamp China's $4 trn traditional retail sector with technology

Alibaba Group Holding kicked off its annual Singles’ Day shopping bonanza, logging $1 billion in gross merchandise volume within the first two minutes.
 

Shoppers from at least 192 countries and regions swarmed the e-commerce giant to scoop up discounted lobster, iPhones and refrigerators. The Chinese company hosted a star-studded gala enlisting tennis star Maria Sharapova and American rapper Pharrell Williams to pump sales. As the event got underway, 93 per cent of transactions were done via mobile. Analysts are expecting another record day on Alibaba’s platforms, with Citigroup predicting a 31 per cent rise in transactions to 158 billion yuan.