Walmart says Flipkart’s Big Billion Days boosted Q3 growth, will weigh on Q4
Walmart said Flipkart’s Big Billion Days sale lifted its International business in Q3, driving strong ecommerce and ad growth. The event’s shift will pull some demand forward from Q4, even as Flipkart led gains in sales, transactions, and higher-margin businesses.
US retailer Walmart said the early timing of Flipkart’s Big Billion Days sale lifted third-quarter performance for its international biz, giving the retailer a sharper-than-expected boost even as the shift is set to weigh on fourth-quarter growth.
"Timing of Flipkart’s Big Billion Days (“BBD”) event benefited sales growth in Q3 and will negatively affect Q4 growth," the US-based retail giant said in an earnings statement on Thursday.
Moreover, Walmart Inc said improvements in its gross margin rate, helped by Walmart US, were partially offset by its international arm due to the timing of Flipkart's Big Billion Days (BBD) event.
"The BBD event saw strong customer engagement with sales growth led by mobile devices, electronics, and fashion. At our peak, we delivered 87 orders per second, with the fastest delivery in about three minutes," said John David Rainey, CFO, Walmart, in a post-earnings call with analysts.
Walmart's International business, which operates in 18 countries outside the US, has reported a double-digit growth of 10.8% to $33.5 billion in the third quarter of FY26. In constant currency (CC) terms, Walmart's International business net sales growth was 11.4%, led by Flipkart, China, and Walmex; transaction counts & unit volumes up across markets.
Walmex is Walmart's Mexican and Central American division.
Walmart International ecommerce sales in the October-December period rose 26%. During the quarter under review, Walmart's International advertising business also grew 34%, led by Flipkart, and helped by BBD timing.
"Across the enterprise, our business model continues to evolve, with operating income increasingly influenced by improved ecommerce economics, particularly in Walmart US and Flipkart, with growing contributions from business mix, most notably in higher margin areas like advertising and membership fees," added Rainey.
The Flipkart Big Billion Days 2025 sale ran from September 23, 2025, to October 2, 2025. It featured early access for Flipkart Plus and Black members on September 22, 2025.
Walmart acquired a 77% controlling stake in Flipkart in 2018, in a $16-billion deal. In subsequent years, it further raised its stake to over 80% in the Bengaluru-headquartered ecommerce major.
(Along with inputs from PTI)
Edited by Jyoti Narayan