Anta, Li Ning shares surge as Chinese consumers back domestic brands in Xinjiang cotton row

Name: Beijing hits back at Western sanctions against China’s alleged treatment of Uygur Muslims
Uploaded: 2021-03-26T05:53:16.000Z
Duration: 3 min 36 s
Description: Beijing hits back at Western sanctions against China’s alleged treatment of Uygur Muslims

Chinese consumers boycott goods made by H&M, Adidas and Nike, as they face a backlash on the mainland for not buying cotton produced in Xinjiang

Chinese firms like Li Ning, Anta, Bosideng, Peacebird and Semir are likely to take market share from foreign rival amid the backlash, Zheshang Securities says

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Shares of Chinese apparel and sports brands have gained in the Uygur row between Beijing and the West. Photo: Shutterstock

Eric Ng

Published: 1:53pm, 26 Mar 2021Updated: 4:22pm, 26 Mar 2021

Shares of Chinese sportswear and apparel companies rose on Friday, as a resurgence of nationalistic sentiment hit sales of leading foreign brands after the West imposed sanctions on China.

Chinese consumers and celebrities have boycotted goods made by multinational brands like Sweden’s H&M and other popular companies like Adidas and Nike, as they faced a backlash in China for not buying cotton produced in Xinjiang.

The Chinese government also jumped in, saying it opposed external interference in Xinjiang and pressed the companies to “correct their mistakes” and respect the views of mainland customers.

“Amid the backlash on foreign brands, we believe Chinese sportswear brand Anta and Li Ning to further challenge the China market shares of Nike and Adidas, while leading Chinese leisure wear brands Bosideng, Peacebird and Semir to encroach on shares of Uniqlo and brands marketed by Bestseller Fashion Group [such as Jack & Jones],” Zheshang Securities analyst Ma Li said in a note on Friday.

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Beijing hits back at Western sanctions against China’s alleged treatment of Uygur Muslims

Anta surged 5.6 per cent on Friday to close at HK$128.10. Li Ning closed 2.9 per cent higher at HK$51.45 after rising as much as 9 per cent, while Bosideng International rallied 7.2 per cent to HK$3.57.