E-commerce giant Amazon said it will host its White Friday sales that will provide discounts on more than 30 product categories for Middle East shoppers. Customers can enjoy savings of up to 70 per cent on big-name brands from November 24 to November 30, the e-commerce site said in a statement on Sunday. Amazon Prime members will benefit from 12-hour early access to the sale from 11am tomorrow. Customers who are not Prime members can sign up for a free 30-day trial, the company said. Prime members are also entitled to free next-day delivery on eligible products, with no minimum purchase required. “The White Friday sale is the most highly-anticipated shopping event in the UAE,” said Abdo Chlala, director of marketing and Prime, Amazon Mena. Online retail sales in the UAE is expected to cross $1.5 billion in the fourth quarter of this year as Covid-19 drives users to increasingly shop online, according to a report by RedSeer Consulting earlier this month. Customers using Emirates NBD, Emirates Islamic Bank and Liv cards for White Friday sale deals will also benefit from an additional 15 per cent discount up to Dh75 on eligible orders, the company said. New deals will be added every day on the site throughout the seven-day event. Amazon will also help shoppers support small local businesses in the UAE through coupon offers. Customers in the UAE can also shop for deals from the Amazon US Black Friday Sale through Amazon.ae’s Global Store from November 24 to November 30. Prime members are eligible for free international shipping from Amazon US with no minimum purchase during the White Friday sale. Amazon first began its White Friday event in the UAE six years ago. It is a spin-off of the global shopping phenomenon, Black Friday, which started off as an American concept but which later gained traction around the world. Black Friday refers to the Friday after the Thanksgiving holiday, during which stores in the US traditionally slash some prices by up to 90 per cent.