Alibaba, China's largest online retailer, trumped speculations and earned a whopping $9.3bn in sales during the 'Singles' Day' shopping event.

The firm revealed that it had shipped 278 million orders,  43 percent of which were made using their mobile devices.

This year's sales was 61.8 percent higher compared to last year's sales, which reached $5.75bn with 150 million packages in shipment.

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Singles' Day is hailed at the largest online retail sales day in China, comparable to the United States' "Cyber Monday," which is usually held every Monday after the Thanksgiving and is treated as a big day for online shoppers.

"You're seeing the unleashing of the consumption power of the Chinese consumer," Joe Tsai, said Alibaba Group's executive vice chairman said.

Tsai said that the huge sales made by Alibaba is a sign that the Chinese economy is shifting from supplies and exports to consumption.

Alibaba already expected to break sales records this year. Discounts were offered to lure more buyers to shop at the online retailer.

"I bet the number [of goods bought] is going to be scary," Jack Ma, Alibaba's executive chairman said last year week.

The company is publicly traded at the New York Stock Exchange.

Alibaba adopted the Singles' Day in 2009 in an effort to boost sales. However, Singles' Day has been already held since 1993. It was said that students at Nanjing University picked the date as an anti-Valentine's Day, in honor of those who were single, given them that special date to lavish on shopping for themselves. It has since become a hit among Chinese consumers.

The Chinese consumer market is expected enjoy a 25 percent growth rate for the years and it projected to earn a whopping $718bn in 2017,  compared to this year's $390 bn, a recent study AT Kearney can reveal.

TagsJack Ma