China's Largest Shopping Festival 'Guanggunje' Approaches... Some Express Concerns Over Slow Performance

As China’s largest shopping festival, Guanggunjie (November 11th, Singles' Day) approaches, expectations for a rebound in local consumption are rising. However, some concerns have been raised that consumer sentiment has not recovered as much as expected, given the third-quarter earnings of consumer goods companies falling short of expectations.

Taobao and Tmall, operated by Alibaba, China’s largest e-commerce company, began pre-sales events for Guanggunjie on the 24th, kicking off discount promotions. Guanggunjie, a large-scale discount event that started in 2009, takes place around November 11th, a date consisting of four number ones symbolizing singles without partners. Around the same time, competitor JD.com also joins the discount events, making it the largest consumer festival led by the private sector in China.

According to the Chinese daily Duozhongwang, Li Zachi, known as the 'Lipstick Oppa,' who recently faced controversy after an argument with a consumer, launched about 400 products through a live broadcast on the 25th, achieving total sales of approximately 9.5 billion yuan (about 1.76 trillion won) through pre-orders. (Photo by Duozhongwang)

So far, overall sales figures have not been disclosed, with only intermittent sales volumes of individual influencers being reported. According to the Chinese daily Duozhongwang, Li Jiaqi, known as the “Lipstick Oppa,” who recently faced controversy after a dispute with a consumer, launched about 400 products through a live broadcast on the 25th, generating approximately 9.5 billion yuan (about 1.76 trillion KRW) in total sales through pre-orders. However, this figure is only half of last year’s sales during the same period (21.5 billion yuan), the media reported. It is still too early to determine whether this performance reflects the overall consumer atmosphere or is due to the decline in Li Jiaqi’s influence following his recent problematic remarks.

Last year, both Alibaba and JD.com did not disclose total sales figures for the first time after the event, as it was believed that disappointing sales might further dampen consumer sentiment.

In the market, there is also optimism that this year, e-commerce companies will achieve sales growth rates exceeding the pre-COVID-19 levels of 25-50%. China’s retail sales for September, announced on the 18th, increased by 5.5% year-on-year, surpassing the previous month’s 4.6% and the forecasted 4.5%, strengthening expectations for consumption improvement.

However, concerns have also been raised that consumption signals are weaker than expected. As earnings reports from leading consumer goods companies are released one after another, sales growth rates are falling short of expectations. Sportswear manufacturer Li Ning reported a decline in third-quarter store sales compared to last year, causing its stock price to drop 15% to 25.65 Hong Kong dollars (about 4,452 KRW) as of 10:07 a.m. on the day. Earlier, Li Ning had announced that third-quarter store sales decreased by a low double-digit percentage year-on-year, while online sales fell by a single-digit percentage.

Similarly, sportswear company Anta Sports fell 2.7% to 88.35 Hong Kong dollars, and machine tool manufacturer Techtronic Industries dropped 3.3% to 68 Hong Kong dollars. However, Alibaba’s stock rose 0.4% to 79.55 Hong Kong dollars, and JD.com’s shares increased 2.1% to 98.65 Hong Kong dollars.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.