Editor's note: Andy Mok is a senior research fellow at Center for China and Globalization. The article reflects the author's opinions, and not necessarily the views of CGTN.

What started as an offbeat tongue-in-cheek holiday to lament the lonely hearts of Nanjing college students has become a gargantuan global commercial and entertainment extravaganza. It is also the world's first global holiday originating from China. And so, Singles' Day is both a microcosm and key part of China's political, economic, and cultural miracle.

The absolute scale of the Chinese market is the foundation for the success of Singles' Day. This year is noteworthy because this is the year that China's consumer market will overtake that of the Unites States. According to New York-based research company eMarketer, "China will end the year with total retail sales of 5,074 trillion U.S. dollars, exceeding that expected for the U.S. by more than 100 billion U.S. dollars." Moreover, based on one of its forecast, China's retail sales are expected to grow by 7.5 percent this year, which is more than double the 3.3 percent estimate for the United States. 

While China's population of 1.4 billion is the world's largest, without effective infrastructure this vast market would remain only a fantasy. Since the early 1990s China has invested more than eight percent of its GDP in infrastructure investment ranging from roads, railways, electric power and telecommunications, while in comparison both the U.S. and the EU invested approximately 2.6 percent. 

As a result, according to a McKinsey study, China's stock of infrastructure investment of 76 percent of GDP exceeds the global average of 71 percent. By investing in infrastructure the Chinese government enabled fast, inexpensive and dependable delivery of goods across China. Without these sound political decisions, the success of China's e-commerce sector, including Singles' Day, was not possible.

China's remarkable progress in infrastructure created the space in which companies like Alibaba could apply their ferocious talent for relentless and fast-paced innovation as well as legendary work ethics and operational excellence. For example, Taobao.com, the B2C platform which debuted in 2003 and is one of Alibaba's three core businesses, established its leadership in the Chinese market by not charging any transaction fee. At the time this was questioned by some Western analysts as a foolhardy move. 

However, today Taobao lists hundreds of millions of products and services from millions of sellers and is the ninth most popular website in the world. Last year, Alibaba's core commerce business, of which Taobao.com is a part, achieved pre-tax profit margins of 47 percent.

As China continues to upgrade its infrastructure through the accelerated rollout of 5G and the consumer market gets more fast-paced and competitive, China's internet titans continue to innovate. 

For example, this year Alibaba significantly expanded the brick-and-mortar element of Singles' Day by accelerating its investments in malls, convenience stores and food delivery services to offer a more integrated retail experience. Meanwhile, Tencent's WeChat, JD.com, and Pinduoduo.com also deliver an unending stream of product and services innovations to grow their share in China's booming digital market.

The vibrancy of China's e-commerce sector, led by Singles' Day, has proven irresistible to overseas merchants. By 2013, Singles' Day sales surpassed that of the United States' Black Friday. This year it is expected to be more than five times that of Black Friday, which was once viewed as an unassailable symbol of global retail might.

In 2019, more than 22,000 international merchants representing 180,000 brands from over 200 countries participate in Alibaba's Singles' Day. Moreover, more than 90 percent of transactions take place online, resulting in greater efficiency and more detailed understanding of customers for merchants while consumers can avoid the overnight lines and occasional violence associated with Black Friday in the United States.

While Singles' Day initially targeted consumers in China, today the market is much broader. According to Alibaba, more than 500 million people around the world participate in this year's Singles' Day, which is an increase of 100 million over last year. Both AliExpress, which targets consumers outside China, and Lazada, Alibaba's Southeast Asian operation, are again expected to play key roles in extending Singles' Day to the rest of the world. Truly, Singles' Day has established itself as the first global holiday from China.

Singles' Day is not only the result of wise and effectively implemented government policies, it also contains policies and other elements that created China's political, economic and cultural miracle.  

However, by incorporating vision, technology, hard work and unbeatable execution capabilities, it has not only improved the material well-being of people throughout the world, but also added to the world's cultural heritage. In the world of e-commerce, Singles' Day is contributing to the creation of a community of shared future for mankind.

What would a world influenced by Chinese values look like? This is a question that more and more people around the world are asking. Singles' Day, China's contribution to e-commerce and global culture, can help provide an answer.

(If you want to contribute and have specific expertise, please contact us at opinions@cgtn.com.)