Singles’ Day sales early totals lag expectations as China shoppers stay cautious amid weak demand

The Story

China’s Singles’ Day shopping festival, which runs around Nov. 11 and is often seen as a gauge for the wider economy, is starting off with signs of weak consumer appetite despite heavy promotions. Retail data platform Syntun said cumulative Singles’ Day sales as of Oct. 31 totalled just over 1 trillion yuan (about $154 billion), broadly matching the same point last year.

The campaign has expanded over time, beginning weeks earlier than before and now extending across multiple platforms. The scale of the event underscores its role in retail: total Singles’ Day sales reached almost 1.7 trillion yuan ($254 billion) in 2025, a record figure.

Analysts say the broader context is weighing on households. Prolonged pressure from a real-estate downturn and other economic strains has left many consumers less confident, even as parts of the economy continue to grow. Retail sales of consumer goods rose just 1.1% in the January-to-September period, while China’s exports surged, including a 35% jump in October compared with a year earlier.

Economic messaging has also shifted as optimism fades. Max Zenglein, senior economist for Asia Pacific at The Conference Board, said improvements in sentiment have “repeatedly proved short-lived,” and pointed to weakening confidence in domestic demand.

In practice, shoppers described cutting back on non-essential purchases. In Foshan, a furniture manufacturing hub, 24-year-old Gabby Liang said she was buying less online and expected to purchase fewer items during this year’s Singles’ Day than she did last year. A Beijing resident, Kong Min, said they were less focused on pursuing famous or high-end brands than before.

Retailers have tried to stimulate spending with new tools. Alibaba has integrated its Qwen AI into its Taobao and Tmall platforms to help customers place orders and find products, and it has been promoting plans that offer AI tokens during Singles’ Day. Chinese media reported that a livestream by Li Jiaqi, known as the “Lipstick King” for his large past sales, sold plans covering about 2 trillion tokens within half an hour.

Some segments are still finding demand. Jacob Cooke, CEO of Beijing-based consultancy WPIC Marketing + Technologies, said health-related products are performing relatively well and that imported fish oil online sales rose nearly 43% year over year in the 12 months through September. He also cited growth of between 28% and 37% for supplements aimed at sleep and joint or bone health.

Still, multiple research and business contacts pointed to “discount fatigue” as consumers become accustomed to deals available throughout the year. Yaling Jiang, founder of ApertureChina, said Singles’ Day’s historic appeal—expecting the biggest discounts of the year—has diminished after promotions broadened into a longer shopping stretch.

Broader consumption pressures are reinforced by the kinds of purchases that lag. Passenger car sales in China fell by almost 25% in January to September, and the decline partly reflects cuts to government subsidies, while passenger car exports rose 71% over the same period. Luxury demand has also softened in recent months, with LVMH and Kering both reporting weaker China demand.

Zenglein said policymakers may face less urgency to shift the economy toward household spending while exports and industrial progress remain strong. In the view of Liang, who works in furniture sales, the overall picture leaves people with enough to get by but “just not much extra to splurge.”