From false claims of Americans panic-buying Chinese goods to bot-driven attacks on US brands, a tide of misinformation is casting a shadow over a temporary trade truce between Washington and Beijing. The world's two biggest economies agreed earlier this month to pause reciprocal tariffs for 90 days, a surprise de-escalation in their bitter trade...
26 May 2025
China is getting a new trade fair specialising in womenswear with the BIRD Fashion Fair. The China National Garment Association (CNGA) is hosting the first edition of BIRD in June. It is the first “international trade fair dedicated exclusively to innovations in womenswear,” the Chinese apparel association announced on Wednesday. The acronym...
22 May 2025
Chanel, long seen as a bellwether of the global luxury market, reported a 4.5 per cent decline in sales for 2024, falling to 18.7bn dollars, as economic pressures and shifting consumer behaviour weighed on the industry. Operating profit fell more sharply, down 28.2 per cent to 4.5bn dollars, according to results released on Tuesday. The downturn...
20 May 2025
The growth of the Chinese economy in April did not meet analysts' expectations. Retail sales growth and production growth in the country were lower than previously expected, according to Reuters and AP News. A major reason cited was the increase in import duties between the US and China since the beginning of April. Retail sales growth amounted...
US apparel and footwear trade associations have welcomed the US and China’s 90-day pause on heightened tariffs. Yet, while the temporary agreement has somewhat calmed the waters of the two regions’ trade war, organisations are still calling for a long-term deal that will mitigate rising costs and prices. This was reflected in a statement from...
13 May 2025
Even after the temporary easing of the trade dispute, Donald Trump continued to make business difficult in the US for Chinese online retailers like Temu and Shein. Until recently, they benefited from the fact that goods deliveries with a value of less than 800 dollars were exempt from tariffs. Since the beginning of May, however, a tariff of 120...
Washington – The New York Stock Exchange opened this Monday with pronounced gains after the US and China announced the suspension for 90 days of most of the mutual tariffs, in a de-escalation of the trade war launched by Donald Trump. Around 1.50pm GMT, the Dow Jones was up by 2.47 percent, the Nasdaq index increased by 3.47 percent and the...
China and the United States have agreed to reduce their mutual tariffs in the ongoing trade dispute. According to a joint statement, the measure will be temporarily in effect for 90 days. The news triggered strong gains on international stock markets, but the euro against the US dollar came under pressure. Accordingly, US tariffs on Chinese...
12 May 2025
As the global economy was disrupted by rising US tariffs, many Asian fashion players met in Hong Kong from April 27 to 30 to attend the Fashion InStyle trade show and the first edition of the Next@Fashion InStyle space. FashionUnited was on site to gauge the pulse of ‘Made in Asia’. It was crowded in late April at the huge Convention and...
1 May 2025
TikTok abounds with viral videos accusing prestigious brands of secretly manufacturing luxury goods in China so they can be sold at cut prices. But while these "revelations" are spurious, behind them lurks a well-oiled machine for selling counterfeit goods that is making the most of the confusion surrounding trade tariffs. Chinese content...
25 Apr 2025
US president Donald Trump has once again bumped up tariffs on Chinese imports. In the latest update from the White House, the Trump administration now said “China faces up to a 245 percent tariff on imports to the US as a result of its retaliatory actions”. This includes a 125 percent reciprocal tariff, a 20 percent tariff to address the...
17 Apr 2025
LVMH, the world’s largest luxury conglomerate and a barometer for the broader industry, reported a 5 per cent decline in earnings from its fashion and leather goods division in the first quarter, casting a long shadow over what was expected to be a year of cautious recovery. The French giant’s challenges may well extend into the second quarter,...
16 Apr 2025