What happened
Shares of JD.com (JD 2.08%) were gaining today after China's biggest direct online retailer posted blowout results during Singles' Day, the unofficial Nov. 11 holiday that is China's largest shopping event.
As of 11:44 a.m. EST on Thursday, JD stock was up 6%.
Image source: JD.com.
So what
Singles' Day, when the Chinese shower gifts on the country's bachelors and bachelorettes, dwarfs any comparable American shopping holiday, including Amazon Prime Day, Black Friday, or Cyber Monday. In its 11-day sales event, which started at the beginning of the month, JD reported a record $41.1 billion in gross merchandise volume, which is roughly what Amazon does in an average month.
Sales doubled, or even tripled, in a number of key categories, including gaming laptops and phones, smartwatches, pet products, fresh produce, high-end beauty products, and luxury products. As a sign of its prowess in logistics, JD also delivered 93% of first-party orders in just one day.
The strong performance showed that JD hasn't lost the momentum it gained during the pandemic in areas like groceries and healthcare, where the company saw a spike in orders for flu vaccinations and pharmacy delivery orders.
Now what
JD was one of several Chinese e-commerce companies, including Alibaba, to report strong Singles' Day numbers, showing that e-commerce demand remains elevated even as the pandemic has eased in China.
JD has already been a big winner this year with the stock up 150% year to date, and the Singles' Day results bode well for the company's third-quarter report, which is due out on Nov. 16. Analysts are anticipating a 33.5% jump in sales to $25.7 billion and for earnings per share to increase from $0.29 to $0.40. JD has easily beaten estimates recently, so don't be surprised if it does it again next week.
