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At Least 31 Killed in Massive California Wildfires; Voter Ballots Being Recounted in Key Florida Races; Macron: Nationalism Is a Betrayal of Patriotism. Aired 12-1a ET

Aired November 12, 2018 - 00:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


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NATALIE ALLEN, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): You are watching CNN NEWSROOM. Ahead this hour, a warning against nationalism on the world stage. French president Emmanuel Macron's World War I commemoration speech is seen as a rebuke to Donald Trump.

CYRIL VANIER, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): Plus the most destructive fire in California's history claims more lives and crews fighting the blaze warn, it is still far from over.

ALLEN (voice-over): Also this hour a record-breaking Singles Day in China. Huge sales figures for an event that's bigger than Black Friday and Cyber Monday combined. In other words, three-zero billion.

VANIER (voice-over): We will dissect the numbers and explain what that's all about.

Hello; thank you so much for joining us. I'm Cyril Vanier.

ALLEN (voice-over): I am Natalie Allen, thanks for joining us.

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ALLEN: With the world looking on, France's president has taken another bold stand against nationalism, warning it can erase what a nation holds dearest: its moral values.

VANIER: Emmanuel Macron made his comments on Armistice Day as world leaders were in Paris to mark 100 years since of end of World War I. Among them, U.S. President Donald Trump, who has fueled the recent rise of nationalism, proudly pushing an America first agenda.

ALLEN: A lunch was held following Sunday's ceremony. The White House says Mr. Trump discussed a variety of issues with Russian president Vladimir Putin and German chancellor Angela Merkel as well as Mr. Macron. Nic Robertson is covering the story for us from Paris. He has got more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Really at the core of the commemoration today, President Macron's speech. It was multilayered; part requiem for fallen generations, part reminder for this generation of leaders, their responsibilities to future generations.

He touched on one of the key subjects for him, multilateralism that he thought the European Union and United Nations, these global institutions are important, important for the world.

He was critical obliquely of President Trump and President Putin as well, with references to the selfishness of some nations that they would put nationalism first, he said, which was a corruption of patriotism.

EMMANUEL MACRON, PRESIDENT OF FRANCE (through translator): Patriotism is the exact opposite of nationalism, national civil a betrayal of patriotism. By saying our interests first, who cares about the others. We erase what a nation holds dear effort, what gives it life, what makes it great and what is essential. It is moral values.

ROBERTSON: Well, that wasn't the only criticism that seemed to be heading President Trump's way. He was criticized for not attending a commemoration at an American World War I cemetery on Saturday at Belleau Wood, an important battle lasted more than three weeks that helped turn the tide of World War, June 1918, the deadliest battle in the history of warfare for the United States.

President Trump on Sunday, however, did attend another commemoration at another cemetery for American World War I dead. This is how he paid tribute to those dead.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: Here on the revered grounds of Suresnes American Cemetery lie more than 1,500 U.S. service members who made the ultimate sacrifice in the First World War. Among those buried here are legendary Marines who fought in the Battle of Belleau Wood.

In that treacherous forest and the surrounding fields, American Marines, soldiers and Allied Forces fought - and they fought through hell - to turn the tide of the war. And that's what they did; they turned the tide of the war.

It was in that battle that our Marines earned the nickname "Devil Dogs," arising from the German description of their ferocious fighting spirit.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERTSON: And in fairly swift order after that commemoration, President Trump headed back to Washington, leaving Emmanuel Macron, the French President hosting the Paris Peace Forum. Three days of talks with leaders and other officials dignitaries here in Paris about the President Macron's ideas about multilateralism, about how better to govern the world, about how to leave a better world for future generations.

That's really key to what President Macron believes, key to what he was trying to what he was trying to deliver, for all the dignitaries and all the people that were watching this World War I commemoration today. President Trump on his way back to the White House undoubtedly facing domestic challenges of his own there -- Nic Robertson, CNN, Paris.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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VANIER: We are joined by CNN European affairs commentator, Dominic Thomas. He chairs the Department of French and Francophone Studies at UCLA.

Dominic, Trump and Macron made a big show of being friends earlier this year; we had all this coverage of the bromance.

After this weekend, do you think they are still friends?

DOMINIC THOMAS, CNN EUROPEAN AFFAIRS COMMENTATOR: Well, you are absolutely right. Going all wait back to the July 14th, 2017, official visit made by President Trump to Paris and, then followed up in April of this year, in Washington, D.C., the exuberance, the touching, the kissing, the hugging all those kind of things have pretty much disappeared.

So things clearly seem to have cooled off. The big questions, really, that we are left with is, first of all, is it really necessary for them to have that kind of a public relationship for business to get done?

And, secondly, really, when we look at these two individuals, although they do agree on certain things, the big question is, are they still able to collaborate and cooperate beyond having that relationship?

But, of course, with President Trump, we are always just one tweet away from a relationship breaking down. And certainly the coverage of this meeting in Paris is likely to upset President Trump.

VANIER: Dominic, I would like for you to address first the substance of Sunday's commemorative ceremonies. Emmanuel Macron's speech implied that Trump's style of nationalism is the kind of thinking that led to wars in Europe in the past.

Do you think that's fair or is that a bridge too far?

THOMAS: No, I don't think it's a bridge too far. Whether it will lead to wars is a another question. But certainly the kinds of ways in which President Trump has been speaking over the past few years about populations coming from poorer countries around the world, about ethnic minorities, the question of anti-Semitism, racism and so on, all of these sorts of questions, through the colonial period, the imperial period, led up to the First World War and the Second World War. And when we see the kind of tensions and divisiveness and the attacks

that are taking place on the media, on individuals from opposing parties and so on, this kind of climate of Othering and of creating distances between people is certainly something that one should be extraordinarily attentive to, particularly whether one listens very carefully to those populations that are the specific target of this kind of speech and how just upset and rattled they are.

VANIER: Ultimately, how much impact would you say that Donald Trump really has had on this U.S.-Europe alliance?

Much has been made of the fact that he's been very blunt with his allies, certainly he doesn't seem invested, I think that's fair, in this relationship. But he also hasn't walked way from the European Union.

THOMPSON: He hasn't walked away from it. But he has undermined the European Union at every step. I think it is absolutely clear -- and this is, you know, the evidence is there through the sorts of people that he surrounds himself with and speaks to -- that a kind of Brexit- like mentality is far closer to the policies of Donald Trump.

He does not like multilateralism and I firmly believe that a weakened European Union is something that Donald Trump would like to see. And his comments, the ways in which he has provided support -- now, these organizations in Europe have been around for a very long time but there is no doubt that his America first mentality and the kinds of statements that he has made have helped radical right political parties and populist parties in Europe gain momentum.

He has been, as I continue to say, the oxygen for so many of these causes that are creating problems for the European Union project.

VANIER: Yes, certainly he was in favor of Brexit and, reportedly, the first question he asked Donald Tusk, the president of the European Council when he had him on the phone after being elected, what is, "Who is next?"

What is the next European country that will break way from the E.U.?

There was an interesting clash of headlines this week. We had the commemorative events of the First World War; 100 years ago the U.S. helped the Allies defeat Germany and win the war; 100 years later, just this week, Emmanuel Macron suggested that Europe needed to be able to defend itself, including -- including -- from the United States.

THOMAS: Right. Yes, and this created a lot of tension. So yet again, President Trump arrives at a foreign destination and immediately attracts attention through controversy. But he was responding to some very specific mistakes or comments, rather, made by Emmanuel Macron. The interesting thing is that Emmanuel Macron ended up clearing up some of these on CNN, not on FOX News; one of the ironies, of course, of President Trump traveling internationally is that, as he has said, he can't watch FOX News. He's forced to watch CNN. So it's interesting that Emmanuel Macron

took to that network to tell the story. But it's absolutely clear about this, it's not so much that European Union fears --

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THOMAS: -- or that Europe fears an imminent attack from the United States. It's quite simply that they cannot longer, at least for the time being, rely on the United States because Donald Trump's comments have been so completely unpredictable.

And so not only does this feed into President Trump's comments about lack of contributions to NATO and so on -- and you see Europe responding to this -- but I think that, under pressure from various European leaders, most notably Germany and Angela Merkel, they really feel like it's time to think beyond a kind of dependence on the United States, particularly at this moment when the president, from day-to- day, is so unpredictable.

VANIER: Yes, certainly they are asking themselves if they need to organize for a world where Europe is not so close to the United States.

Fareed Zakaria interviewed the French president, Emmanuel Macron. We will run excerpts of that in the next hour and the full interview in the next coming hours.

Dominic Thomas, always such a pleasure speaking to you. Thanks.

THOMAS: Thank you.

ALLEN: Paris held the largest commemoration of the war but the end of the Great War was remembered around the world.

VANIER: In England, Queen Elizabeth and members of the royal family attended a solemn ceremony at the Cenotaph War Memorial in Central London.

ALLEN: Thousands of people waved Polish flags in Warsaw Sunday, marking 100 years of independence and the end of the war. Until 1918, Poland had been carved up among the Russian, German and Austro- Hungarian empires.

VANIER: And in Canberra, Australia, crowds gathered to pay tribute to the 60,000 Australians and 18,000 New Zealanders who died serving the British Empire in the First World War.

ALLEN: We turn now to California and the death toll continues to rise as high winds feed massive wildfires burning at both ends of the state. At least 31 people have now died; 29 of the deaths were from Northern California's ferocious Camp Fire, tying it for the deadliest fire in California's history.

VANIER: The Northern California town of Paradise was nearly leveled by the Camp Fire. The blaze erupted on Thursday with little warning, forcing residents to flee as flames engulfed areas around them. More than 200 people there are still unaccounted for. Our Nick Valencia has the latest from what is left from Paradise.

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NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This is already the most destructive fire in California state history. And looking at the scenes behind me, you can certainly tell why. These homes absolutely stood no chance against the ferocity of these flames. On Thursday morning, when the fire started, by the time most residents realized what was happening, they were already in trouble.

Right here, this is Skyway, the main thoroughfare through Paradise, California, one of the three main evacuation routes out of this town. On Thursday morning, this was absolutely jam-packed with cars, just gridlocked. And these cars here behind me abandoned on the side of the road are the aftermath of that gridlock. And it is just absolutely stunning to see inside these vehicles, the make and model of them is just unclear, indecipherable here.

And you look at pieces like this, aluminum, melted glass, windshields melted on top of the steering wheel. Behind me, you can still see some of these structures here are smoldering. More than 109,000 acres have already burned in this community, 50,000 plus residences have evacuated. And it's still a very situation. Downed power lines, downed trees makes things especially dangerous, the mayor telling me it could be weeks before they allow residents back in here -- Nick Valencia, CNN, Paradise, California.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: That's Northern California, now we turn to Southern California. Actress Adrienne Janic's home in Bell Canyon was threatened by the Woolsey Fire and she joins me now on the telephone.

Adrienne, we know that you have been tweeting about your situation and tweeting out pictures and videos.

What is the situation where you live right now?

Are you out of danger?

ADRIENNE JANIC, ACTOR: Hi, Natalie. Thanks for having me on. You know, we are not exactly out of danger yet. We still had another round of high winds today. We had a couple of flareups in the community. A lot of people, a lot of residents are not being allowed back in.

The only reason why I am still in my community is I stayed behind. And the reason being I was ready to go and we had five fire trucks come to my house and I asked if I needed to leave and they said no, because they would like to use my home as a base and kind of like a command center.

So they said it was OK for me to stay, so I stayed and that's how I got all my footage and photos and I decided to start documenting everything.

ALLEN: Yes.

JANIC: We are not out of the woods yet. We are still not in the clear.

ALLEN: Well, thank goodness that the firefighters are very near your house, so that probably gives you some comfort since you are there now. You have posted images of your surroundings and we are looking at video right now of literally hills on fire. It's really indescribable.

Another picture you posted just showed all black after the fire, like everything is gone. Can you help us appreciate what you see during the daytime --

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ALLEN: -- and what was it was like before?

JANIC: Oh, my gosh, well, before the fire, Bell Canyon is this beautiful gated community, very quiet, far enough from L.A., far enough away from L.A. but close enough for us to get back in to it.

But it's green, beautiful, we have deer and a lot of wildlife. It's basically country living in the city.

And Thursday when the fire hit, I mean, just to be surrounded by flames was just unreal. It was literally hell on Earth. It just seems very -- I am still numb. I haven't really processed it because I have just been going. And that's kind of what's keeping me going, is just -- I am basically the voice for my community because I am one of the only ones left in here.

So I am relaying of what's going on the community out to the residents, wanting to know what's going on.

ALLEN: Is that kind of a creepy feeling or do you feel all right because the firefighters are nearby?

JANIC: It's creepy in a sense, because it almost feels like the apocalypse; the neighborhood is empty and at night -- we still have no power so it's pitch black right now.

But yet having the firefighters and we have strike teams. We actually have a couple of fire trucks at the end of my cull cul-de-sac and they were told to be based on my street to look out for my street, which is a lot of what's going on in the community.

They have been assigned certain streets to be on standby. So having them there makes me feel a little bit better, not so isolated.

ALLEN: That's good to know. I have to ask you, Adrienne, a lot of people, all of a sudden their lives intersect with the news. They say when they're interviewed, I just can't believe this would happen here.

Do you have that sense?

Or have you lived in California long enough to know that it can happen there?

JANIC: I am from California and, you know, these things happen and I have been in this community for 15 years. And we did have a fire, a pretty horrible fire, 13 years ago which we survived but not to this extent. I would say this is the worst fire in Bell Canyon history.

I was told -- I think there were at least 30 homes lost. And there has never been homes lost in this community. So it is one of those things that you say, wow, you know, I never thought this could happen to me and where I live. But it does, you just never know.

ALLEN: Right. It's devastating. And it's -- it seems that's fire season goes on and on. We really appreciate your time. And we hope that your house makes it, Adrienne, thanks so much for talking to us. We are pulling for you and your home.

JANIC: Thank you. So far it's still standing so I am surviving.

ALLEN: All right, Adrienne Janic for us, thanks so much.

VANIER: And that's -- I am not sure that I would want to stay there if firefighters told me they want to set up shop in my house.

ALLEN: Right. I just would get in their fire truck and sit there.

VANIER: And the firefighters are not getting much help from the weather, unfortunately; that's the bad news.

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ALLEN: In a series of tweets over the weekend, President Trump blamed the California wildfires on mismanagement and threatened to cut federal aid.

He tweeted this, "With proper forest management, we can stop the devastation constantly going on in California. Get smart."

VANIER: Now that angered firefighters, who accuse President Trump of politicizing the disaster.

The president of the California Professional Firefighters said this, " The president's message, attacking California and threatening to withhold aid to the victims of the cataclysmic fires, is ill-informed, ill-timed and demeaning to those who are suffering, as well as the men and women on the front lines."

ALLEN: Much more news ahead here. A short period of relative calm is shattered. Coming up, the latest eruption of violence at Israel's border with Gaza.

VANIER: Also a news website is accused of tax evasion by the Philippine government and some are calling this a violation of press freedoms, we'll tell you why, we'll explain the situation when we come back. (MUSIC PLAYING)

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VANIER: Seven Palestinians and --

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VANIER: -- one Israeli soldier are dead in the aftermath of an Israeli military operation in Gaza.

ALLEN: Hamas said gunmen in a car opened fire on a group of its men. Among those killed was a Hamas military commander. Sirens in Israeli communities close to Gaza indicated incoming rocket fire. The Israeli military said it intercepted two of the launches.

VANIER: The violence prompted prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu to cut short his Paris visit for the World War I commemoration.

The Philippine government is being accused of attacking freedom of the press. Authorities have charged an investigative news website with tax evasion. Rappler is one of the few Philippine outlets that has openly criticized President Rodrigo Duterte and his policies.

Its CEO and executive editor, former CNN bureau chief, Maria Ressa, also faces tax evasion charges. Rappler says the government is trying to intimidate it. CNN's Alexandra Field is in Hong Kong.

First, Alexandra, tell us about Rappler and the kind of reporting that they have been doing.

ALEXANDRA FIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Maria Ressa is by every measure a renowned journalist. Rappler is a site that has emerged as a fierce critic of the Duterte administration.

Their reporting has shone a light on President Rodrigo Duterte's drug war and the thousands of extrajudicial killings that it has led to. This is reporting that has been honored by committees like the International Committee for Journalists.

It was just last week that Ressa received an international award from that group for the journalism, for the work done by Rappler, specifically mentioning their work on the drug war. But it's that reporting that Ressa and Rappler believe made them targets of the government.

Activists have come to their side to say that it is clear that Rappler and Ressa are being limited in their freedoms as members of the press. They believe that there is a campaign against both Rappler and Ressa.

There was a move back in January to revoke the license of Rappler. That's being followed now by these allegations of tax evasion. Both times activists have come to the defense of Rappler, saying these are clear indications of an effort underway in the Philippines by the administration and by officials in the government to undermine the rights and the freedoms of press.

Back in January at the time the SEC was revoking the license of Rappler, government officials said it had nothing to do with Duterte. Certainly that did not calm the concerns raised after this -- Cyril.

VANIER: Alexandra Field will continue to monitor this, Alexandra, thank you so much for joining us.

ALLEN: It seems like this, just country after country sometimes, going after journalists for doing their job. Marie Ressa, of course, is our former colleague here.

The U.S. president calls himself a nationalist. France's president says nationalism is a danger to the entire world. But the both leaders insist they get along very well. France's Emmanuel Macron explains how that's possible as we push on here, stay with us.

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[00:30:00] NATALIE ALLEN, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Welcome back to CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Natalie Allen.

CYRIL VANIER, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: I'm Cyril Vanier. Let's look at your headlines this hour. The death toll has now risen to 31, in the massive wildfires burning at both ends of California. Most of the deaths are in Paradise, California, a town largely wiped away by the devastating campfire.

Firefighters are struggling against fierce winds to put out that blaze in the northern part of the states and two large fires in Southern California, as well.

ALLEN: We've got a live video coming out of Florida, where voter ballots are being recounted, right now, in three tight Florida races. Officials in Broward County are working day and night tallying up votes in key contests, including the races for U.S. Senate and governor. It's after midnight and the work goes on.

Republican Rick Scott who is running for Senate, has filed three more lawsuits against election officials.

VANIER: French President Emmanuel Macron took aim at Donald Trump's America First agenda on Sunday. His comments came during the World War I Armistice Centennial Ceremony in Paris, which the U.S. President attended. With Mr. Trump looking on, Mr. Macron declared that nationalism is the opposite of patriotism.

ALLEN: The French President says he does not do Twitter diplomacy, pretty much the exact opposite of the U.S. President Donald Trump, who is constantly on Twitter and even criticized Mr. Macron with a tweet, just after landing in Paris, on Friday.

VANIER: Yes, Mr. Trump, to remind you, wrote in part, President Macron of France has just suggested that Europe build its own military in order to protect itself from the U.S., China and Russia. Very insulting. Well, Mr. Macron says he'd rather talk face-to-face, not through tweets. He described his relationship with President Trump in an exclusive interview with CNN's Fareed Zakaria.

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EMMANUEL MACRON, PRESIDENT OF FRANCE: We had a very good discussion this morning and it confirmed in front of the press that he was -- he was OK. I think there is --

FAREED ZAKARIA, CNN HOST: Does that mean that his tweet was a mistake?

MACRON: I don't know. I'm not the one to comment his tweets. I always prefer having direct discussions or answering questions at making my diplomacy through tweets. But I think we had a very clear discussion. He is in favor of a better burden sharing with NATO. I agree with that.

And I think that in order to have a better burden sharing, all of us do need more Europe. And I think the big mistake would, to be very direct with you, what I don't want to see some European countries increasing the budget, in Defense, in order to buy Americans on other arms or materials coming from your industry.

I think if we increase our budget, is to build our autonomy and to become a natural sovereign power. I mean, it is part of our credibility vis-a-vis our people, and vis-a-vis the rest of the world, and I think it's fair. I think your President is right regarding that. And I think I am right to precisely promote this idea.

What I do believe is that if -- at this stage, Europe has to become a more consistent, a more sovereign, a more united and democratic power. And today, it's not yet the case. We build something very original during the past seven decades, but there is a new step forward to be organized. And this is the case today.

ZAKARIA: Let me ask you about your relationship with Donald Trump. He says, now that he's made up with you or after the tweet. He says you have lots in common. And I'm wondering, what that is, because he calls himself a nationalist.

[00:35:10] He draws on these populous forces, and you described yourself often as one of the great opponents of these forces of nationalism and populism. So, what do you think you have in common?

MACRON: Probably the fact that both of us are outsiders of the classical positions, I would say, and arrived from the business side. He was not a favorite. And it was an unexpected candidate. And I was pretty much in the same situation in France, probably, because we are very much in line in the fight against terrorism, and we work very closely together following this line.

We know where we disagree. And we are very straightforward in that, on climate, on trade, on multilateralism, but we work very well together because we are very regular and direct discussions. But obviously, you are right. I would say I'm a patriot. I do believe in the fact that people, our people, are very important and having French people is different from German people. I'm not a believer in a sort of globalism without any differentiation. I think it doesn't -- it's very inconsistent and it's extremely -- it makes our people very nervous.

But I'm not a nationalist, which is very different from me, from being a patriot. I do defend my people, I do defend my country, I do believe that we have a strong identity, but I'm a strong believer in cooperation between the different people. And I'm a strong believer of the fact that this cooperation is good for everybody.

Where the nationalists are sometimes much more based on a unilateral approach. And the law of the strongest, which is not my case, that's probably our difference.

ZAKARIA: Were you disappointed that President Trump chose not to go to the cemetery and memorial at Aisne-Marne. I know it was his decision, but this was a place that French and American soldiers died together, fighting for freedom, and is very important in the history of the U.S. Marine Corps. Were you disappointed?

MACRON: No, I think it was just because of the weather and for security reasons. So, I do respect that. I am not part of the security team of President Trump. He did want to go there. And we had a discussion. We had a very -- a very pleasant and friendly lunch.

And he wanted to go there, but unhappily, he was not in the situation to go there because the helicopter was blocked in Paris, due to the weather. But anyway, I appreciated he had the intention to go to Guadeloupe.

And if you remember, we, together, at the White House garden, precisely, we put an oak coming from Guadeloupe, together, as a symbol of this alliance. So, I'm sure that next time, it will be in the situation to go there, but he still has a tree, in a certain way, representing this alliance in the presence of the marines.

These young American people came to France, they were 18, 19, 20, and -- I mean, they died there, in a place they didn't know, unknown from the families. I have the -- in my office, normally I have the best key that Lafayette brought to Washington. I mean, it's so strong that we are from our history and for the future altogether.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: Interesting thoughts from the president, there. We'll bring you the rest of Emmanuel Macron's exclusive interview with Fareed, a few hours from now, that's at 10:00 a.m. in London, 6:00 p.m. in Hong Kong.

VANIER: Next up on CNN NEWSROOM, China's Alibaba group racks up big numbers on the world's biggest online shopping day, breaking their own record from last year. We'll have a live report from Hong Kong. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[00:40:00] VANIER: Online retail giant, the Alibaba Group, set a new sales record on China's biggest shopping day.

ALLEN: You are wondering how big? Well, hold onto your hats. Alibaba says it rang in about $30.8 billion, with the B, dollars, in sales, on November 11th. This year's so-called Single's Day, that's well above last year's record of $24 billion.

CNN's Sherisse Pham following this story for us, watching the numbers, she's live in Hong Kong. What's really amazing is that more than what they expected and what is Single's Day, anyway? It certainly gets people fired up to spend money.

SHERISSE PHAM, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It does get people fired up. It's an informal holiday where singletons can celebrate being single on a date that is November 11th, 11-11, get it? Yes.

So, these were huge numbers for Alibaba, $30 billion, almost $31 billion in 24 hours, big numbers, no doubt. But, yes and no, it was good and bad, because growth was significantly down from last year, sales growth last year, 40 percent, this year, coming in at just 27 percent.

A couple of things playing in to that slow down there, we've got a slowing Chinese economy, a weaker Renminbi, a weaker Chinese Yuan and, of course, the on-going trade tensions between the U.S. and China.

So, not a lot of Chinese shoppers, probably buying goods on the tariff's list, so not a lot of people buying soybeans and diesel, but people buying coffee and liquor, and those were on the tariff's list, and you can bet that they were more expensive.

But look, Alibaba executives playing down those geopolitical head winds saying, the rising middle class Chinese consumer will continue to benefit us. And one executive saying that trend will continue trade war, or no trade war, Natalie.

ALLEN: Right. Poor soybeans, they didn't move many soybeans, did they?

PHAM: Not at all.

ALLEN: All right, Sherisse, thank you. 11-11, we'll remember that.

VANIER: Single's Day.

ALLEN: Single's Day. Why not? Why not?

VANIER: I had no idea that was a thing.

ALLEN: It is.

VANIER: Thank you for watching CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Cyril Vanier.

ALLEN: I'm Natalie Allen. "WORLD SPORT" is coming right up. We'll see you in 15.

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