KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Beijing said it is investigating PVH Corp. in a move that may block the American clothing firm from selling its products in the Chinese market.
- The probe against the owner of brands like Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger marks the latest in a slew of tit-for-tat trade curbs between the U.S. and China.
- China is accusing PVH of boycotting cotton products from Xinjiang, an autonomous region in northwest China from where the U.S. has banned certain imports over forced labor allegations.
Beijing said it is investigating PVH Corp. (PVH) in a move that may block the American clothing firm from selling its products in the Chinese market, as tit-for-tat trade curbs between the U.S. and China rachet up.
China is accusing PVH, whose brands include Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger, of boycotting cotton products from Xinjiang, an autonomous region in northwest China from where the U.S. has banned certain imports over forced labor allegations.
The Chinese commerce ministry said that PVH had 30 days to give information on whether “it had taken discriminatory measures against Xinjiang-related products in the past three years,” China’s state-run Xinhua News Agency reported.
PVH didn’t immediately return an Investopedia request for comment.
Trade Curbs Escalating Between US, China
The move by Beijing comes two days after the White House proposed a ban on Chinese and Russian connected vehicle software and equipment, and two weeks after it took new steps to limit a loophole around U.S. tariffs that are especially used by Chinese e-commerce firms Shein and Temu parent PDD Holdings (PDD).
In August, PVH reported a second-quarter sales drop, citing a “challenging consumer environment” in its Asia Pacific operations, especially in China and Australia.
PVH shares edged higher soon after the opening bell Wednesday. They are down more than 20% in 2024.