Alibaba reports $13 billion in sales in first hour and two minutes of Singles' Day

Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group reported on Monday that sales reached 91.2 billion yuan ($13 billion) within the first hour and two minutes of Singles' Day, an annual 24-hour shopping fest akin to Black Friday and Cyber Monday in the United States, according to Reuters.

Why it matters: Singles' Day is the world's largest online sales event. Last year, Alibaba reported $30 billion worth of Singles' Day sales, dwarfing the $7.9 billion of online sales for last year's Cyber Monday in the U.S.

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Editor's note: This story has been updated to reflect that the $13 billion was reached within the first hour and two minutes.