The Business of Fashion
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
Retail sales in China rose 4.3 percent year-on-year in October, according the the country’s National Bureau of Statistics. Though this beat the previous month’s rise of 3.3 percent, analysts had been hoping for more of a bump in a month that included the nine-day national 'Golden Week’ public holiday period.
Though domestic tourism did see a considerable rebound over the holiday period, it was still below last year’s levels.
National Statistics Bureau spokesman, Fu Linghui, told reporters in Beijing this morning that China’s fourth-quarter economic growth will accelerate from the third quarter. China’s economy grew 4.9 percent in the third-quarter from a year earlier, but annual growth could slow to just over 2 percent for 2020.
In other Asian economic data released today, Japan’s economy grew at the fastest pace on record in the third quarter, as improved exports and consumption helped the country emerge from the depths of its pandemic-induced economic slump.
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The world’s third-largest economy expanded an annualised 21.4 percent in July-September, beating a median market forecast for an 18.9 percent gain and marking the first increase in four quarters, government data showed.
This followed a 28.8 percent plunge in the second quarter, when consumption took a hit from lock-down measures to prevent the spread of the virus. Analysts are portraying the sharp rebound as a one-off from the depths of recession, and cautioned any further bounce back will be moderate as a resurgence in infections at home and abroad makes the future outlook murkier.
The French beauty giant’s two latest deals are part of a wider M&A push by global players to capture a larger slice of the China market, targeting buzzy high-end brands that offer products with distinctive Chinese elements.
Post-Covid spend by US tourists in Europe has surged past 2019 levels. Chinese travellers, by contrast, have largely favoured domestic and regional destinations like Hong Kong, Singapore and Japan.
While travel to Europe remains muted, Chinese shoppers are flocking to Singapore, Thailand and other Southeast Asian destinations where fashion retailers are hoping Lunar New Year marketing investments will pay off.
Local fashion designers experimenting with puffers and other down clothing have scored collaborations with outerwear companies like Moncler and attracted the attention of prominent international retailers like H.Lorenzo.