Data from the research firm Syntun reveals a widening divide in how consumers spend. While traditional e-commerce platforms struggled with a marginal 0.9% growth, the on-demand delivery sector surged by over 110%. This shift reflects the aggressive investments Alibaba and JD.com have funneled into rapid delivery services, attempting to capture the few remaining pockets of retail momentum.

Consumer fatigue is playing a central role in the slowdown. Frequent, year-round promotional campaigns have eroded the urgency once associated with the 618 event, which commemorates the founding of JD.com. Despite JD.com claiming record user participation, the broader market narrative remains bleak. Official data from May showed a 0.6% decline in national retail sales, the first contraction since late 2022. Tmall maintained its lead in total sales volume, followed by JD.com and ByteDance’s Douyin, though none of the major platforms disclosed comprehensive earnings, leaving the true scale of the downturn obscured.