(Photo: Nanfang Daily)
Shenzhen shoppers have shown strong spending power during this year's mid-year shopping spree, which is closely watched as a barometer of the appetite for consumer spending.
The "618" online shopping event, which is typically held from June 1 to 18, was first initiated by Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com to rival Alibaba's Nov. 11 Singles' Day shopping festival.
This year's "618" online shopping event, with the slogan "better bargains with better goods off the shelf," is longer than before, starting at 8 p.m. May 31 and wrapping up at 11:59 p.m. today.
According to data from JD.com, Guangdong ranked first in purchasing power nationwide, with Shenzhen demonstrating the strongest purchasing power in the southern Chinese province.
Nationally, Shenzhen came in third among the top five cities in terms of transaction volume on the e-commerce platform and fifth in the number of trade-in orders.
Due to the recent rainy and humid weather in southern China, sales of dehumidifiers in Guangdong increased significantly during the "618" shopping event this year, JD.com data showed.
Ceramic tiles, dehumidifiers, zongzi, durian, and instant cameras are the top five categories in terms of turnover growth, with year-on-year increases of 251%, 242%, 166%, 104%, and 81%, respectively, according to JD.com.
The top five categories by per capita consumption amount in the province are mobile phones, air conditioners, tablets, flat panel TVs, and refrigerators.
As of 11:59 p.m. Tuesday, JD.com recorded an unprecedented volume of transactions and orders, with JD Live's orders surging more than 200% year on year, the e-commerce giant said.
JD.com said that more than 500 million shoppers placed orders on its platform during the "618" shopping spree, 83 brands witnessed a cumulative transaction volume of more than 1 billion yuan (US$137.8 million), and over 150,000 small and medium-sized businesses on the platform saw sales growth of over 50%.
