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Alibaba Breaks Records, Sells $17.7 Billion on Singles' Day (techinasia.com)
Alibaba broke its Singles' Day sales record with room to spare, offering assurances about the strength of the Chinese consumer despite the nation's economic slowdown. From a report on Tech in Asia:As the clock struck midnight, Alibaba announced its final total for 2016's Singles Day sales frenzy: US$17.7 billion. Alibaba has beaten its own sales totals each year since the sales began, and this year was no different. It passed last year's US$14.3 billion high-water mark early in the evening, a sign that this year's growth wasn't going to be quite as explosive as previous years' (in 2015, Alibaba hit the previous year's mark at midday). In the end that proved true, as Alibaba fell just short of the US$20 billion target some had been expecting it to surpass. Still, nearly US$18 billion is nothing to sneeze at.
And what is Singles' Day?
From what I understand it's kind of an anti-Valentines Day. Basically a day for urban singles to spend money on things for themselves. A lot of young people in China have moved to the cities so have a decent amount of money, but reduced availability of women looking to be in relationships (due to a combination of young people focusing on careers and a carryover form the One Child Policy) means a lot of people aren't in relationships. Basically it's a Chinese Hallmark (ie made up) holiday to celebrate being single by buying yourself crap instead of buying it for a boyfriend or girlfriend.
The only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for it to be pitted against a slightly greater evil
How is it bad for the US if China is doing well? As far as I can tell, we'll actually have a much better economy here in the US if the rest of the world becomes affluent. They don't have to be doing poorly for us to be doing well--economics is not a zero sum game. I say: good for China that they're growing.
The one child policy was phased out in 2015. When it was in effect, it only applied to people living in the cities. People in rural areas could have more than one child (presumably because they were farmers and needed the extra labor.) Fines were somewhat arbitrary but could be many times the average annual salary. Failure to pay the fine would mean your child would never be able to go to school, get a job, rent an apartment, etc.
An interesting side note, it is illegal in China for doctors to tell a pregnant woman the gender of her unborn child. So if you ever meet a pregnant Chinese woman, don't bother asking if it's a boy or a girl.