China’s biggest e-commerce platforms issued a raft of numbers showing robust sales growth during the country’s biggest annual online shopping gala, belying concerns about the malaise dogging the world’s No.

While Singles’ Day was previously a one-day event, shopping platforms in China now kickstart the festival weeks ahead to drum up sales volume.

SHANGHAI >> China’s largest e-commerce company Alibaba Group said it recorded “robust growth” in sales and a “record number” of shoppers over this year’s Singles’ Day sales period, a weeks-long event that ended at midnight on Monday.