Why Foreign Firms Are Walking on Eggshells in China
Pedestrians cross a road near a Coach and a Dolce & Gabbana store in Hong Kong.
Photographer: Anthony Kwan/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
The world’s largest consumer market is also increasingly a political minefield for global firms. Chinese consumers, besieged by news of geopolitical tensions, a slowing economy and the trade war with the U.S., are becoming more sensitive to any perceived slight to their country or culture. And they’re quick to retaliate. The growing nationalism is also making them lean toward home-grown brands, jeopardizing the plans of multinational firms that have big bets on the Asian nation.
Many of them relate to China’s sovereignty: