Latest news with #Shein
The Star
an hour ago
- Entertainment
- The Star
Monsters and memes: Labubu dolls ride China soft-power wave
SHANGHAI: Small, fuzzy and baring sharp teeth, Chinese toymaker Pop Mart's Labubu monster dolls have taken over the world, drawing excited crowds at international stores and adorning the handbags of celebrities such as Rihanna and Cher. Beijing-based Pop Mart is part of a rising tide of Chinese cultural exports gaining traction abroad, furry ambassadors of a "cool" China even in places associated more with negative public opinion of Beijing such as Europe and North America. Labubus, which typically sell for around US$40, are released in limited quantities and sold in "blind boxes", meaning buyers don't know the exact model they will receive. The dolls are "a bit quirky and ugly and very inclusive, so people can relate", interior designer Lucy Shitova told AFP at a Pop Mart store in London, where in-person sales of Labubus have been suspended over fears that fans could turn violent in their quest for the toys. "Now everything goes viral... because of social media. And yes, it's cool. It's different." While neighbouring East Asian countries South Korea and Japan are globally recognised for their high-end fashion, cinema and pop songs, China's heavily censored film and music industry have struggled to attract international audiences, and the country's best-known clothing exporter is fast-fashion website Shein. There have been few success stories of Chinese companies selling upmarket goods under their own brands, faced with stereotypes of cheap and low-quality products. "It has been hard for the world's consumers to perceive China as a brand-creating nation," the University of Maryland's Fan Yang told AFP. Pop Mart has bucked the trend, spawning copycats dubbed by social media users as "lafufus" and detailed YouTube videos on how to verify a doll's authenticity. Brands such as designer womenswear label Shushu/Tong, Shanghai-based Marchen and Beijing-based handbag maker Songmont have also gained recognition abroad over the past few years. "It might just be a matter of time before even more Chinese brands become globally recognisable," Yang said. Through viral exports like Labubu, China is "undergoing a soft-power shift where its products and image are increasingly cool among young Westerners," said Allison Malmsten, an analyst at China-based Daxue Consulting. Malmsten said she believed social media could boost China's global image "similar to that of Japan in the 80s to 2010s with Pokemon and Nintendo". Video app TikTok -- designed by China's ByteDance -- paved the way for Labubu's ascent when it became the first Chinese-branded product to be indispensable for young people internationally. Joshua Kurlantzick from the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) told AFP that "TikTok probably played a role in changing consumers' minds about China". TikTok, which is officially blocked within China but still accessible with VPN software, has over one billion users, including what the company says is nearly half of the US population. The app has become a focus of national security fears in the United States, with a proposed ban seeing American TikTok users flock to another Chinese app, Rednote, where they were welcomed as digital "refugees". A conduit for Chinese social media memes and fashion trends, TikTok hosts over 1.7 million videos about Labubu. Cultural exports can "improve the image of China as a place that has companies that can produce globally attractive goods or services", CFR's Kurlantzick told AFP. "I don't know how much, if at all, this impacts images of China's state or government," he said, pointing to how South Korea's undeniable soft power has not translated into similar levels of political might. While plush toys alone might not translate into actual power, the United States' chaotic global image under the Trump presidency could benefit perceptions of China, the University of Maryland's Yang said. "The connection many make between the seeming decline of US soft power and the potential rise in China's global image may reflect how deeply intertwined the two countries are in the minds of people whose lives are impacted by both simultaneously," she told AFP. At the very least, Labubu's charms appear to be promoting interest in China among the younger generation. "It's like a virus. Everyone just wants it," Kazakhstani mother-of-three Anelya Batalova told AFP at Pop Mart's theme park in Beijing. Qatari Maryam Hammadi, 11, posed for photos in front of a giant Labubu statue. "In our country, they love Labubu," she said. "So, when they realise that the origin of Labubu is in China, they'd like to come to see the different types of Labubu in China." - AFP
Business of Fashion
2 hours ago
- Business
- Business of Fashion
Temu US Sales Plunge 25% Amid Tariff Barrage
Temu's sales decline in the US is deepening as the online marketplace drastically cuts spending on advertising targeting American consumers, signalling a shift in focus after President Donald Trump's tariff barrage. Compared to a year ago, Temu's weekly sales dropped more than 25 percent in the period from May 11 through June 8, according to Bloomberg Second Measure, which analyses credit and debit card data. That's in contrast to other e-commerce platforms run by Shein, Walmart Inc. and Inc., where weekly sales have all returned to year-on-year growth since Trump's trade truce with China in mid-May. The deepening sales decline comes alongside Temu's cut in advertising spending, an abrupt turnaround in strategy after it spent big last year to attract the attention of US shoppers, including running commercials on Super Bowl night. From creating thousands to tens of thousands of new advertisements daily before April 10, the numbers are now down to dozens or even single digits, with some days in June seeing no new commercials, according to analytics company AppGrowing Global. ADVERTISEMENT 'Temu's sales growth has always been glued to their aggressive advertisements,' said Wu Yanwei, chief content director of AppGrowing's parent YouCloud. 'The abrupt slowdown in advertisement spending is likely turning its growth engines off' in the US, Wu said, noting that Temu was channeling ad spending toward other markets including Europe. While declining to specifically comment on sales and ad numbers, a spokesperson for Temu said the company has been working with local merchants across regions to deliver stable pricing to consumers. Temu and Chinese e—commerce shopping platforms such as Shein had for years relied on a tariff exemption on small parcels to ship cheap clothing and household goods to American consumers duty-free. After President Donald Trump plugged that loophole this year, they largely lost the discount-appeal that drew US shoppers in droves. Still, Shein's US sales have fared relatively better in recent months. It has managed to reverse a drop in sales to return to growth from June 1, Bloomberg Second Measure data showed. Shein's single-digit growth since then is similar to levels posted by Walmart's e-commerce platform. Shein's advertising in the US has remained more stable than Temu, with the number of new commercials most days this year being anywhere between dozens to a few hundreds, according to AppGrowing Global. Learn more: French Senate Backs Law to Curb Ultra Fast-Fashion If implemented, the law would ban advertising by fast-growing Chinese e-commerce platforms like Shein and Temu.
Straits Times
2 hours ago
- Business
- Straits Times
Chinese exports of rare-earth magnets plummet in May
Workers transport soil containing rare earth elements for export at a port in Lianyungang, Jiangsu province. PHOTO: REUTERS Chinese exports of rare-earth magnets plummet in May BEIJING - Chinese exports of rare-earth magnets continued their downward slide in May, official data showed on June 20, reflecting restrictions imposed by Beijing during its trade war with the United States. China is the world's leading producer of rare earths, used to make magnets essential to the automotive, electronics and defence industries. Since April, Beijing has required traders to obtain licences before they export the strategic materials, a move seen as retaliation for US curbs on the import of Chinese goods. Many manufacturers, particularly in the automotive sector, have bewailed what they view as sporadic licence issuances. And Chinese customs data revealed on June 20 that the country's rare-earth magnet exports plummeted by 70 per cent year-on-year in May, following an initial slowdown observed in April. Exports fell below the US$60 million (S$77 million) mark, hitting their lowest level since 2015 excluding the Covid-19 pandemic, according to Bloomberg News. After talks between China and the US in London in June, Beijing said it had issued a 'certain number' of export licences for rare earths. US President Donald Trump said last week on his Truth Social platform that 'any necessary rare earths... will be supplied, up front, by China'. Beijing also said it would launch a 'green channel' to facilitate rare earth exports to the European Union. But its exports of rare-earth magnets to the EU in May plunged by 81 per cent year-on-year, according to the customs figures. And exports of small parcels to the US dropped by half compared to the previous month. In May, Washington ended a tariff exemption previously enjoyed by low-value parcels shipped from China and Hong Kong. The measure dealt a severe blow to platforms shipping low-cost items from China, such as Shein and Temu. The decline was offset by a rise in China's total small parcel exports to the rest of the world, which were up 40 per cent year-on-year, with particularly notable increases to Singapore, Russia, Europe and Australia. Besides the US, several countries have been trying to limit the rise of platforms sending cheap products made in China. In June, France adopted a Bill that aims to curb fast fashion by banning advertising and imposing an additional tax on small parcels. AFP Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
The Star
3 hours ago
- Business
- The Star
US tariff spike hits China's small parcels, squeezing exporters
FILE PHOTO: Shein logo and the company's web shop are seen in this illustration taken, May 16, 2024. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration//File Photo US tariff hikes on small packages from China triggered a slump in shipments last month, contributing to a huge drop in bilateral trade and roiling exporters like Shein Group Ltd. The value of small parcels sent from China to the US fell to just over $1 billion in May, the least since early 2023, according to customs data released Friday. The 40% plunge from the same month last year marks a sharp reversal for a booming trade route, coming just as the US government eliminated a long-standing tariff loophole. The policy shift is upending the business models of fast-fashion titan Shein and its rival Temu, which relied on the exemption to send goods directly to US customers free of tariffs. It's also squeezing thousands of small merchants who relied on the model as a low-cost entry into the world's largest consumer market. "Without the exemption, it would mean tougher business to us, and much fewer options for consumers, and potentially higher prices,' said Wang Yuhao, whose Kunming-based incense company, Shantivale, recently began selling to the US. "This is a lose-lose situation.' For the entrepreneur, the new tariffs and logistical fees of direct shipping now would mean losing $2 on every parcel. To avoid the additional cost, Wang said he has pivoted to bulk shipments to US warehouses, a move that demanded an upfront investment of more than 100,000 yuan ($13,800) for inventory and storage. The source of the disruption is the end of the "de minimis' rule exemption for Chinese and Hong Kong shipments. Previously, packages valued under $800 could enter the US duty-free. Since May 2, those parcels face tariffs as high as 54% after the Trump administration moved to close what it deemed an unfair trade loophole. The impact on the largest players was swift. Shein raised US prices on items from dresses to kitchenware ahead of the hike to cover the costs of the higher tariffs, according to data compiled by Bloomberg News. In the week after the tariffs took effect, both Shein and Temu saw double-digit sales declines, an early sign the punitive measures are eroding their popularity. Even with the drop, the US remained the largest single destination for China's small parcels, the data showed. Malaysia followed by taking more than $700 million worth of such shipments last month. Globally, small parcel shipments rose 40% in May compared to a year ago, with Belgium, South Korea, Hong Kong and Hungary among other large destinations. - Bloomberg
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
US Tariff Spike Hits China's Small Parcels, Squeezing Exporters
(Bloomberg) -- Supply Lines is a daily newsletter that tracks global trade. Sign up here. Security Concerns Hit Some of the World's 'Most Livable Cities' JFK AirTrain Cuts Fares 50% This Summer to Lure Riders Off Roads One Architect's Quest to Save Mumbai's Heritage From Disappearing NYC Congestion Toll Cuts Manhattan Gridlock by 25%, RPA Reports Taser-Maker Axon Triggers a NIMBY Backlash in its Hometown US tariff hikes on small packages from China triggered a slump in shipments last month, contributing to a huge drop in bilateral trade and roiling exporters like Shein Group Ltd. The value of small parcels sent from China to the US fell to just over $1 billion in May, the least since early 2023, according to customs data released Friday. The 40% plunge from the same month last year marks a sharp reversal for a booming trade route, coming just as the US government eliminated a long-standing tariff loophole. The policy shift is upending the business models of fast-fashion titan Shein and its rival Temu, which relied on the exemption to send goods directly to US customers free of tariffs. It's also squeezing thousands of small merchants who relied on the model as a low-cost entry into the world's largest consumer market. 'Without the exemption, it would mean tougher business to us, and much fewer options for consumers, and potentially higher prices,' said Wang Yuhao, whose Kunming-based incense company, Shantivale, recently began selling to the US. 'This is a lose-lose situation.' For the entrepreneur, the new tariffs and logistical fees of direct shipping now would mean losing $2 on every parcel. To avoid the additional cost, Wang said he has pivoted to bulk shipments to US warehouses, a move that demanded an upfront investment of more than 100,000 yuan ($13,800) for inventory and storage. The source of the disruption is the end of the 'de minimis' rule exemption for Chinese and Hong Kong shipments. Previously, packages valued under $800 could enter the US duty-free. Since May 2, those parcels face tariffs as high as 54% after the Trump administration moved to close what it deemed an unfair trade loophole. The impact on the largest players was swift. Shein raised US prices on items from dresses to kitchenware ahead of the hike to cover the costs of the higher tariffs, according to data compiled by Bloomberg News. In the week after the tariffs took effect, both Shein and Temu saw double-digit sales declines, an early sign the punitive measures are eroding their popularity. Even with the drop, the US remained the largest single destination for China's small parcels, the data showed. Malaysia followed by taking more than $700 million worth of such shipments last month. Globally, small parcel shipments rose 40% in May compared to a year ago, with Belgium, South Korea, Hong Kong and Hungary among other large destinations. Ken Griffin on Trump, Harvard and Why Novice Investors Won't Beat the Pros Is Mark Cuban the Loudmouth Billionaire that Democrats Need for 2028? The US Has More Copper Than China But No Way to Refine All of It Can 'MAMUWT' Be to Musk What 'TACO' Is to Trump? How a Tiny Middleman Could Access Two-Factor Login Codes From Tech Giants ©2025 Bloomberg L.P. Sign in to access your portfolio
