- A virtual appearance by British actor Benedict Cumberbatch and flashy deals kicked off Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (NYSE:BABA) final 24 hours of its Singles’ Day shopping event on November 11, Reuters reports.
- The online shopping extravaganza, like last year, extended from a one-day event to two primary discount periods.
- The shopping gala took place from November 1 – November 3 and again on the whole day of November 11.
- The report notes that the event racked up $74 billion in orders, or “gross merchandise value” (GMV) in 2020.
- Analysts, however, expect Alibaba to report a minor increase in GMV this year, citing slowing retail sales, supply chain shortages, power disruptions, and the impact of COVID-19 lockdowns.
- Alibaba also shunned the audience for its annual entertainment gala this year or opened a media center to reporters for the first time, citing COVID-19 precautions, and opted to live stream the event instead.
- Alibaba said that in the first second of sales on November 1, shoppers bought 300 million yuan ($46.94 million) worth of Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL) iPhones. The figure grew within four minutes to exceed all iPhone sales on the first day at last year’s event.
- Over 200 luxury brands participated in this year’s event too to offer over 100,000 new products.
- The number of buyers who placed orders during the first sales window for luxury goods jumped 40% year on year.
- The shopping event also capped a year of ongoing regulatory tightening from Chinese authorities in several industries, during which Alibaba was a frequent target.
- Related Content: Berkshire’s Charlie Munger Boosts Long Position In Alibaba: Report
- Price Action: BABA shares traded higher by 2.77% at $164.59 on the last check Wednesday.
Hooker Furniture Reports Mixed Q2 Results, Warns On Supply Headwinds
Hooker Furniture Corp (NASDAQ:HOFT) reported second-quarter FY22 sales growth of 25% year-on-year, to $162.5 million, beating the analyst consensus of $159.1…
