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Xinjiang cotton

Illustration: Lau Ka-kuen

After trade ban, will the Chinese market be enough for Xinjiang’s cotton?

After a US trade ban for cotton from China’s Xinjiang, textile manufacturers have turned to domestic consumers – but the ban’s chilling effect on all exports has left a gap that is difficult to fill.

  • The US’ ban on cotton from China’s Xinjiang has forced a shift to the domestic market for the textile industry – and created a gaping shortfall

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Nike ad featuring athlete licking table tennis paddle sparks disgust in China

‘Monumental’: Uygur group wins appeal over UK probe into ‘slave labour’ cotton

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Could China strangle Europe’s weapons output with cotton?

European politicians and arms producers have complained that China has cut its supply of nitrocellulose, known as guncotton, but experts say Europe would rather not ramp up production.

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Illustration: Lau Ka-kuen

US bars imports from 26 cotton manufacturers over Uygur forced labour

The companies are the latest additions to the Uygur Forced Labor Prevention Act Entity List that restricts the import of goods tied to what Washington says is as an ongoing genocide of minorities in China’s Xinjiang region.

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Banned Chinese cotton found in 19% of US and global retailers’ goods

A US law to safeguard its market from products linked to forced labour has not necessarily been effective, a new study using isotope testing suggests.

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How 5G, AI and a cotton revolution helped China beat US Xinjiang sanctions

Chinese researchers detail how technology has transformed the region’s textile industry and led to record surge in exports.

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Spinning machines in Xinjiang textile factories are connected via 5G technology and being overseen by artificial intelligence, according to a team of scientists in China. Photo: Getty Images

Opinion | EU has reason to keep things sweet with China despite protectionist rules

Although new EU measures covering environmental, human rights and anti-subsidy concerns threaten Chinese business interests, EU and Chinese leaders, braced for Trump 2.0, have reason to keep tensions from boiling over.

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EU reaches deal on forced labour ban, with China’s Xinjiang in its sights

Provisional agreement would target sectors and regions profiting from state-imposed forced labour based on database drawn up by European Commission.

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Chinese firm fights ‘guilty until proven innocent’ US forced labour law

Ninestar, a Chinese laser printer manufacturer, has sued after it and seven of its subsidiaries were barred from exporting goods into the US.

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Workers at a food processing plant in Xinjiang. Chinese companies can no longer export products to the US unless they prove that no forced labour was involved in their supply chains. Photo: EPA-EFE

China sanctions US risk management firm and researchers over Xinjiang ‘excuse’

It is a tit-for-tat response to US Treasury sanctions this month on Chinese entities over alleged human rights abuses.

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China has responded to Washington’s sanctions over alleged human rights issues and forced labour in China’s Xinjiang region by declaring its own sanctions against a firm and two researchers. Photo: AFP

US sanctions more Chinese officials and firms over alleged abuses in Xinjiang

Washington says it has frozen the assets of a former prefectural police chief and a United Front Work Department cadre, actions Beijing says the action amounts to gross interference in China’s internal affairs.

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With designs on China, H&M targets Chinese consumers via localisation hub

H&M launched a design hub at the China International Import Expo in Shanghai this week amid efforts to improve the localisation of its products.

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China-founded Shein targets US$90 billion valuation in US IPO: sources

The e-commerce company was the world’s third-most-valuable start-up in 2022, but its valuation has since dropped along with other start-ups and tech firms.

Customers hold Shein bags in Tokyo, Japan. Photo: Bloomberg

State Council’s free-trade plans for Xinjiang look to sharpen geopolitical edge

The US-sanctioned Chinese region borders eight countries, including Russia, Pakistan and other trade partners that should benefit from a plan to create new manufacturing and innovation hubs in Xinjiang.

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A textile-factory employee in Xinjiang, where China is looking to boost innovation in manufacturing. Photo: Getty Images

Xinjiang defies Western curbs as foreign trade hits record high, surges by 47%

Foreign trade from China’s Xinjiang Uygur autonomous jumped by 47 per cent, year on year, in the first three quarters of 2023 despite Western economic sanctions.

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China’s advanced rice squares off against the salt deserts of Xinjiang

Beijing has been casting the spotlight on Xinjiang for its local-level achievements in bolstering the nation’s self-sufficiency drive, and salt-tolerant rice is said to be making salinated soil arable for other seasonal crops.

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American businesses warned on China forced labour as shipment denials surge

First half of 2023 sees US$587 million worth of goods denied entry to the US, more than doubling the figure for the second half of 2022.

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Cotton farmer Gong Lunquan checks the growth of cotton in a field near Urumqi in northwestern China’s Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region. Photo: Xinhua

Xinjiang party chief meets UN group in bid to counter forced labour claims

Analysts say Beijing may be trying to be more active in its response to criticisms of its treatment of mainly Muslim minorities in the region.

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Canada probes Walmart and Hugo Boss over forced Uygur labour claims

In March, the UN said it was concerned about China’s treatment of its Muslim minority, including the use of forced labour against Uygurs. China denies the allegations.

Grow grains, not cotton: 1 year after US’ Xinjiang ban, China shifts focus

Cotton output from China’s Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region is expected to fall by 11 per cent from last year in 2023 as it places an emphasis on quality over quantity while also creating room for crops amid food security concerns.

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The US’ Uygur Forced Labour Prevention Act, which went into effect in June 2022, has effectively blocked American imports of all products wholly or partially sourced from the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region. Photo: VCG via Getty Images

Ralph Lauren investigated in Canada over Uygur forced labour claims

The fashion giant is accused of having supply relationships with companies in China that use or benefit from use of forced labour from the minority group.

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People walk past Ralph Lauren Corp’s flagship Polo store on Fifth Avenue in New York in April 2017. Photo: Reuters

Critical grains cut back China’s copious cotton yields amid food-security push

Xinjiang, which accounts for the vast majority of China’s cotton, will allocate more cropland for edible grains amid US-led trade restrictions on goods from the region.

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US law banning Xinjiang imports has glaring weaknesses, lawmakers are told

Representative Chris Smith, chairman of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China, writes to Chinese leader Xi Jinping to request a visa to visit Xinjiang, where there is evidence of forced labour.

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China punishes citizens for sharing information on Xinjiang: top security body

Newly disclosed cases show Beijing uses anti-espionage laws against Chinese nationals who leak documents to overseas organisations, which used them to ‘forge lies’ about forced labour in far western region, according to security agency.

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Beijing has denied accusations of human rights abuses against the Uygur Muslim population in Xinjiang. Photo: AP

Xinjiang’s US exports down 90 per cent, 8 months after ‘forced labour’ law began

Exports from China’s Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region to the US dropped by almost 90 per cent in February, eight months after the Uygur Forced Labour Prevention Act came into effect.

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Companies from the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region exported US$497,440 worth of goods to the US last month. Photo: VCG via Getty Images

US-bound exports from China’s Xinjiang drop 64 per cent

Monthly exports to the US from Xinjiang hit their lowest November reading since records began in 2017.

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China cotton production set to grow as Xinjiang offsets drought-hit regions

Total cotton production in China is expected to increase by 5.8 per cent year on year, although demand has weakened, while the US’ Uygur Forced Labour Prevention Act has also hurt the market.

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Xinjiang cotton
In March 2021, Chinese social media began to buzz with the news that European fashion companies such as H&M had publicly disavowed the use of cotton produced in China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, citing allegations that forced labour was being used in its production. Although some of these statements had been made the previous year, the rise in awareness led to public boycotts of the brands, and some of the products being removed from Chinese-owned online marketplaces. 
last updated:
9 September, 2024
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