Alibaba Posts Record Sales Today

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. (Hangzhou, China) is reporting sales of more than $6 billion today, due in part to sales derived from a holiday known as Singles’ Day (similar to Valentine’s Day), on heavily discounted goods. More than 39 billion yuan ($6.4 billion), according to the company, were spent on Alibaba’s websites, including Tmall.com, just 15 hours into the “11.11 Shopping Festival.” The company’s total sales for last year’s event totaled 35 billion yuan, according to Reuters.

Alibaba made its first public offering in September, generating a record $25 billion in investments. This year’s figures have been somewhat boosted by the company’s “pre-sales initiative,” according to Reuters. Merchants took deposits on orders beginning in mid-October, but did not process the full payments until today. This year’s event marketed several global brands and retailers including Calvin Klein, Blue Nile, Costco Wholesale Corp., Origins Natural Resources Inc. and American Eagle Outfitters Inc.