JD shopping carnival reignites consumption demand

JD, which initially launched the June 18 shopping carnival, reported its sales reached mouthwatering 239.2 billion yuan by 2 pm on Thursday, exceeding 201.5 billion yuan a year ago.

The company said the sales from JD Super – its online supermarket -- increased 500 percent in the first 10 minutes of trading on June 18, compared with the same period last year, with more than 2,000 brands witnessing their transaction volume jump 100 percent year-on-year.

Sales of televisions surpassed 100 million yuan ($14.1 million) in just 31 seconds, while air conditioners worth more than 500 million yuan were sold in two minutes, and transaction volume of refrigerators and washing machines surpassed 500 million in just three minutes. Apple's iPhones notched up more than 100 million yuan in sales within five seconds.

It is noteworthy that young users in third- to sixth-tier cities recorded the most rapid growth during this year's June 18 shopping gala promotion, while the middle-aged and elderly users in higher-tier cities increased dramatically, fueled by the consumption of online fresh products, according to JD.

Ling Chenkai, vice-president of JD and head of strategy of JD Retail, said: "We have the responsibility and obligation to both restore consumer confidence and unlock their desire to shop at the same time."

In addition, the turnover of personal care commodities witnessed a six-fold increase within the first minute after the clock struck midnight on June 18, and sales of pet goods rose by 12 times on a yearly basis. Sales in the luxury products category skyrocketed by 500 percent within the first ten minutes.

More than 40 brands sold over 100 million yuan worth of goods on June 1, when the 18-day promotional event officially kicked off, indicating comprehensive recovery and a sharp rebound in some categories, Lu Fei, senior analyst from JD Big Data Research Institute, said.