China economy grew around 5.2% in 2023: Premier
by AFP Staff Writers
Davos, Switzerland (AFP) Jan 16, 2024

Chinese Premier Li Qiang said Tuesday the country's economy was expected to have grown by around 5.2 percent in 2023, as he addressed an annual meeting of global elites in Davos.

The figure would represent an improvement on the three percent recorded in 2022, when tight zero-Covid curbs hammered business activity.

But it would still mean the lowest growth since 1990, excluding the years of the pandemic.

"The Chinese economy generally rebounded and improved last year," Li said in a speech at the World Economic Forum.

"Our GDP growth is expected to be around 5.2 percent, higher than the target of around five percent that we set at the beginning of last year," Li said.

Despite lifting health restrictions, the world's number two economy is still weighed down by a lack of business confidence and sluggish consumption.

A debt crisis in the crucial property sector and soaring youth unemployment have added to the malaise.

"No matter how the world situation changes, China will adhere to its basic national policy of opening up to the outside world," Li said.

He added that "the door to opening up will only get wider and wider".

"Choosing the Chinese market is not a risk but an opportunity," he told the audience.

Uniqlo sues China rival Shein over viral bag copies
Tokyo (AFP) Jan 16, 2024 - Japanese fashion giant Uniqlo said Tuesday that it is suing Chinese rival Shein over copycats of a massively popular crossbody pouch dubbed online the "Mary Poppins carryall".

Videos of fans praising its deceptively small size have gone viral on social media, with one clip on TikTok of a young woman unpacking numerous large items racking up more than a million views.

The lawsuit filed in Japan against Shein Japan and two subsidiaries "demands the immediate cessation of sales of the imitation products, and compensation for damages incurred," Uniqlo said in a statement.

The nylon Round Mini Shoulder Bag, retailing for $19.90 in the United States, has reportedly become Uniqlo's best-selling bag ever, repeatedly selling out.

Shein, founded in 2008 in China and based in Singapore, has quickly conquered the global fast fashion market by catering to young customers through social media.

Valued at $66 billion last year with revenues reportedly over $23 billion, the online retailer is eyeing a major initial public offering in New York potentially this year, the Wall Street Journal reported in November.

The firm has been accused of exploiting unpaid labour, obscuring production processes and encouraging overconsumption as it faces the wrath of environmental and human rights activists.

Last month, Chinese-owned online retailer Temu sued Shein in a US court, accusing it of "mafia-style" intimidation tactics to keep the upper hand in the local market.

Shein Japan was not immediately available for comment on Tuesday.

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