H&M, Nike face boycotts in China as Xinjiang becomes wedge issue

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Published 25 Mar,2021 via Bloomberg Technology & Innovation - U.S. and European retail brands in China are suddenly facing a dilemma: Embrace cotton from Xinjiang and come under attack in the West, or reject it and risk a boycott in the world’s second-biggest economy.

Hennes & Mauritz AB was blasted by the Communist Youth League and the People’s Liberation Army on Wednesday after social-media users dug out an undated company statement about accusations of forced labor in Xinjiang. Calls to boycott the Swedish retailer quickly spread to include Nike Inc., which has previously said it won’t source products from the region due to labor concerns. Brand ambassadors in China for both firms cut ties with the companies in recent days.

“Want to make money in China while spreading false rumors and boycotting Xinjiang cotton? Wishful thinking!” the Communist Youth League said in a post on Weibo, referring to H&M. One of the PLA’s Weibo accounts called H&M’s statement “ignorant and arrogant.”

The Communist Party’s move to target companies over Xinjiang shows President Xi Jinping’s government is seeking to impose real costs for governments and businesses that criticize China’s human-rights record as the Biden administration aims to unite allies over the issue. Bejing slapped reciprocal sanctions on European Union officials on Monday, following coordinated sanctions and statements by the EU, U.S., Canada, Australia and New Zealand.

At a testy meeting between top diplomats of the U.S. and China last week, Politburo member Yang Jiechi made extended remarks attacking the U.S.’s human-rights record and calling on the world to stop interfering in China’s “internal affairs.” Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying continued the pushback this week, hitting the U.S. and Europe over everything from the slave trade and Nazism to the killing of George Floyd and alleged hoarding of coronavirus vaccines.

Chinese firms are now rallying around Xinjiang, which produces more than 80% of the country’s cotton. Anta Sports Products Ltd. and Hongxing Erke Sports Products Co. were among companies that issued statements saying they will continue to source the material from the region. Shareholders rewarded firms that displayed patriotism, while punishing those with links to Western brands.

Anta shares surged as much as 10% in Hong Kong trading, while Xinjiang LaChapelle Fashion Co. was at one stage up almost 40%. Nike supplier Topsports International Holdings Ltd. plunged by a record 16%.

H&M China said on Wednesday that its global supply chain complies with sustainability commitments, and doesn’t reflect any political position. The company also said it doesn’t purchase cotton directly from suppliers, but uses third parties. China accounts for 5.2% of H&M’s global revenue.

But those remarks did little to stem the growing anger in China. H&M no longer appears on Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.’s e-commerce platform Tmall, where the retailer had previously had a presence. Alibaba didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Xinjiang has steadily become a heated issue between China and the West as reports emerged that more than one million mostly Muslim ethnic Uyghurs were put in reeducation camps, prompted the U.S. and others to accuse Beijing of genocide. China has denied the accusations, with officials regularly calling it “the biggest lie of the century.” Beijing says its policies are lifting the region out of poverty, boosting the economy and countering extremism.

In January, the Trump administration ordered a halt to all imports of cotton and tomato paste from Xinjiang. That came a month after the U.S.-based Center for Global Policy published a report alleging new evidence from Chinese government documents and media reports of hundreds of thousands of Uyghurs being forced to pick cotton by hand through coercive state-mandated labor.

Biggest Cotton Consumer

China, the world’s largest cotton consumer and also the biggest exporter of textile products, imports between 2-3 million tons a year to meet demand, largely from U.S. and Brazil. Xinjiang cotton is considered the highest quality, and Chinese government buys it from farmers to fill state reserves.

“Given the potential risks of punishment, all textile exporters to U.S. and Europe markets require suppliers free of Xinjiang cotton,” said Wang Qianjin, a senior analyst with Shanghai International Cotton Exchange.

Companies like H&M are now finding themselves caught in the middle over the issue. In the undated statement, H&M said it’s “deeply concerned by reports from civil society organizations and media that include accusations of forced labor and discrimination of ethnoreligious minorities.”

Chinese celebrities who previously represented H&M issued statements saying they no longer have any ties with it, adding they oppose “attempts to smear China.” Wang Yibo, a popular actor, announced he would cease all cooperation with Nike as he strongly opposes any comments and behavior that brings shame on China.

And Chinese companies like Xtep International Holdings Ltd., China’s third-largest sportwear maker, are making it clear where they stand.

“As a national brand, we’ve been using Xinjiang cotton with an annual consumption of thousands of tons,” Xtep said in an official statement Thursday. “The quality of Xinjiang cotton is world class and we’ll keep using it in the future.”

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