H&M and Nike are facing a boycott in China

H&M, Nike and other big Western apparel brands are facing a boycott in China because of the stand they've taken against the alleged use of forced labor to produce cotton in the country's western region of Xinjiang. H&M and Nike said months ago that they were concerned about allegations that forced labor has been used to produce cotton in Xinjiang, but they've now been caught in an escalating firestorm that has erupted on Chinese social media over the past day.

Swedish multinational H&M, the world's second-largest clothing retailer, has been pulled from major e-commerce stores in China, and a prominent celebrity has cut ties with the brand. Nike (NKE) and Adidas, among other brands, have also faced heavy criticism.

The outrage comes after a group linked to the ruling Communist Party posted a statement from H&M about Xinjiang on the Chinese social media site Weibo. In the statement, which was released in September, H&M said that it was "deeply concerned" over reports of forced labor in the production of cotton in Xinjiang.

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