Nike's sales have risen 13 per cent this quarter from 10 per cent in the previous quarter. The company notched accelerating sales gains heading into the holiday shopping season. Success was broad based, with an eight per cent spike in footwear sales helping to push revenue higher by five per cent in the core US market. In China, revenue jumped 23 per cent with continued spiking e-commerce demand. The strong topline growth was amplified by gross margin expansion and significant expense leverage.

Nike has been spending more cash in areas like technology and marketing to press its advantage in the industry. Yet management has also been cutting costs elsewhere, including by boosting efficiencies in manufacturing and its supply chain. Combined with healthy pricing trends, those successes allowed operating income to jump 25 per cent. A lower tax expense translated into a 35 per cent spike in earnings per share. E-commerce spiked 38 per cent. Consumers are increasingly choosing to buy directly from Nike rather than from one of its retailing partners. The bright spots for Nike are the Chinese market and the retailing apps. Nike made a few adjustments to its short-term outlook that, while seemingly negative at a glance, actually point to continued positive momentum through the holiday season.