Shein faces opposition from China on post-tariff supply chain shift

Shein has been hit with opposition from the Chinese government over its proposals to move some production outside of the country.

Speaking to Bloomberg News, a source familiar with the situation said China’s Ministry of Commerce had reached out to the fast fashion retailer and other companies suggesting that they did not diversify supply chains by sourcing from other countries.

The source said the requests came during the days before Donald Trump’s “reciprocal tariffs” announcement.

The ecommerce giant and China’s commerce ministry did not respond to requests for comment, Bloomberg News reported.

The news comes after Trump defended his new tariffs — calling them “medicine” — as stock markets across Asia, the UK and the US suffered sharp drops and fears of a global trade war intensified.

The US president cautioned that other countries would need to pay “a lot of money” to see the levies lifted, despite mounting pressure from European and Asian leaders to soften his stance.

In February, it was reported that Shein was ramping up its production base in Vietnam to mitigate the impact of rising US tariffs on its supply chain, after Trump removed the “de minimis” rule which allowed duty-free imports of low-value goods.

The retailer hoped that its expansion in Vietnam would help mitigate the impact of tariffs on its business model, which relies heavily on Chinese production.

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