Online retailer Shein debuts on Hong Kong Stock Exchange | NHK WORLD-JAPAN News

Online retailer Shein debuts on Hong Kong Stock Exchange E-commerce giant Shein was listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on Tuesday, after raising the equivalent of over 1.7 billion US dollars in an initial public offering. Shein says it will use the proceeds to improve technology and increase its brand and global presence. The company says it has about 270 million customers worldwide, including in Japan. Its sales last year came to nearly 42 billion dollars. Shein was founded in China and is now headquartered in Singapore. It sells low-priced clothing online, utilizing mid- and small-sized apparel factories in China. But growth has slowed since the Trump administration abolished a tariff-break for low-value imports from mainland China and Hong Kong last year. Reuters news agency reported the firm's valuation at its stock market debut was about a quarter of what it was worth at its peak four years ago. Shein first attempted to be listed on the New York and London stock exchanges. But its alleged involvement in forced labor and environmental policy problems reportedly made those listings impossible. The focus now is whether the company can build a new business model.