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.

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

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

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

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

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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

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.

A US-led ban on Xinjiang cotton, Beijing’s zero-Covid restrictions, and supply-chain delays helped drive down China’s cotton-yarn imports during the year’s first three quarters.

Tomato products from Xinjiang were designated by the US as ‘high-risk’ under the Uygur Forced Labour Prevention Act, but the industry has proved remarkably resilient, mainly because it does not rely on the American market.

Extreme weather, US trade sanctions and global recession fears are disrupting the global market for cotton just as China’s Xinjiang region begins its harvest.

Entities from China’s Xinjiang region exported a 10-month high of US$56.8 million worth of goods to the US in August despite the Uygur Forced Labour Prevention Act having come into effect at the end of June.

Descriptions of detentions in region’s vocational education and training centres between 2017 and 2019 ‘marked by patterns of torture’.

Industry observers surprised by leap in reported shipments for July, as many believed number would plummet to near zero after June launch of law