{"id":418025,"date":"2026-02-10T13:01:20","date_gmt":"2026-02-10T13:01:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/418025\/"},"modified":"2026-02-10T13:01:20","modified_gmt":"2026-02-10T13:01:20","slug":"in-china-consumerism-trumps-nationalism-despite-tensions-with-the-u-s-and-japan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/418025\/","title":{"rendered":"In China, consumerism trumps nationalism despite tensions with the U.S. and Japan"},"content":{"rendered":"

HONG KONG (AP) \u2014 In China<\/a>, consumerism appears to outweigh nationalism regardless of how testy relations have become in recent diplomatic spats with countries like Japan and the United States.<\/p>\n

It has been common practice for the ruling Communist Party to whip up nationalist sentiment<\/a> and deploy propaganda condemning countries deemed to be violating China’s stance on territorial issues as Taiwan and Tibet. At times, Beijing targets companies that make ideological missteps in their maps or advertising.<\/p>\n

In the past, friction with Japan and the United States has led to calls for mass boycotts, protests in the streets or even vandalism on embassies or restaurants. These days, pure nationalism appears not to resonate so much with Chinese consumers accustomed to making their own personal consumption choices.<\/p>\n

\u201cChinese consumers, especially urban middle-class and younger demographics, are not making everyday purchasing decisions based on nationalism,\u201d said Jacob Cooke, CEO of Beijing-based consultancy WPIC Marketing + Technologies.<\/p>\n

Japan still sells despite tensions<\/p>\n

Beijing reacted with outrage<\/a> to Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s comment, not long after she took office in October, that an attack on Taiwan, the self-ruled island China claims<\/a> as its territory, might require a military intervention by Tokyo.<\/p>\n

Chinese officials have condemned the remark and moved to restrict some trade with Japan. Warnings to Chinese travelers not to visit Japan, an ultra-popular destination, have had a notable impact on its tourism industry.<\/p>\n

Be that as it may, huge crowds turned up to the opening of an outlet of Sushiro at a Shanghai mall in December.<\/p>\n

The Japan-based conveyor-belt sushi chain has become a smash success since it opened its first branch in mainland China in 2021.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt tastes good,\u201d said Edith Xiao, a 23-year-old university student who lined up outside a Sushiro restaurant in a Beijing<\/a> mall for more than half an hour to get in. \u201cThe quality of the ingredients is guaranteed.\u201d<\/p>\n

Xiao is also a fan of the Japanese manga and anime series Chiikawa, whose cherubic, hamster-like cartoon character is popular among Chinese.<\/p>\n

The broader state of China-Japan relations<\/a> has had little impact on her own consumption of Japanese culture or restaurants, she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s just statements made by leaders. It doesn\u2019t represent a change in the attitude of people of the country,\u201d she explained.<\/p>\n

American culture appeals to Chinese consumers<\/p>\n

Tensions between the Chinese and U.S. governments over tariffs<\/a>, Taiwan and other issues also don\u2019t appear to be causing Chinese to punish American brands.<\/p>\n

Disney\u2019s Zootopia 2 is a huge hit in China, where its fans, many in cosplay of its characters, helped make it one of the biggest global cinematic hits of 2025.<\/p>\n

It became the highest grossing Hollywood film in China on record with more than 4.4 billion yuan ($634 million) in revenue, according to Chinese entertainment data provider Beacon Pro.<\/p>\n

Despite a government push to promote and subsidize homegrown movies to make China a \u201cstrong film power\u201d by 2035, Chinese film-goers say they welcome an escape into foreign cinematics.<\/p>\n

Zootopia 2 was a light-hearted option, said Ruan Wenlin, who watched the movie in Beijing. \u201cIt was so hilarious,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Many Chinese consumers are \u201ctired, exhausted and anxious from COVID<\/a> and from the weak economy<\/a>,\u201d said Shaun Rein, managing director at China Market Research Group. \u201cPeople are watching Hollywood movies, especially cartoons like Zootopia, because they\u2019re stressed out and just want something to relax themselves,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Ralph Lauren<\/a>, the New York-based fashion brand, meanwhile has been building on its \u201cold money\u201d and quiet luxury aesthetic to win favor with urban middle-class Chinese who are prioritizing quality and value over nationalism, analysts say.<\/p>\n

American fashions appeal to many, despite often fraught relations between Beijing and Washington. Ralph Lauren\u2019s sales have grown faster in China than in Europe or North America.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat attracts me most is its stable brand image and design,\u201d said Zhang Tianyu, who was shopping recently at a Ralph Lauren outlet in Beijing.<\/p>\n

American brands that are succeeding are doing so because they genuinely meet consumer needs or represent a lifestyle Chinese consumers want to associate with, not because of country-of-origin alone, said Cooke from WPIC Marketing + Technologies.<\/p>\n

Evolving patterns as \u2018patriotic buying\u2019 trend shifts<\/p>\n

As a wave of patriotic buying of Chinese brands \u2014 dubbed \u201cguochao,\u201d or national tide in Chinese \u2014 has evolved and matured, many consumers have grown comfortable with both foreign and domestic brands.<\/p>\n

\u201cChinese (people) have stopped buying just for the sake of buying Chinese brands,” said Rein from China Market Research Group. Consumers are \u201cscared about the economy, they\u2019re anxious about their job prospects. So they\u2019ll just buy whatever brand, domestic, Chinese or foreign, fits their definition of value and lifestyle,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Compared with a decade ago, nationalist sentiment has less influence on consumer behavior, analysts said.<\/p>\n

In 2012, Chinese crowds gathered for anti-Japan protests over a territorial dispute, smashed Japanese brand cars and vandalized Japanese restaurants. There were calls to shun Japanese goods.<\/p>\n

Likewise in 2021, Western brands including Nike were hit with boycotts<\/a> in China due to disputes over political issues such as Beijing’s treatment of members of Muslim minorities in Xinjiang, in the country’s far west.<\/p>\n

More recently, controversies like a Pokemon card game event that was originally planned<\/a> to be held at a shrine to honor Japan\u2019s war dead still triggered angry comments on Chinese social media, but no obvious broader repercussions.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe may believe that all Chinese consumers should follow Beijing\u2019s direction of discarding foreign influence, which is misleading,\u201d said Yaling Jiang, an independent Chinese consumer analyst. \u201cGeopolitics does not dictate business flows on the local level.\u201d<\/p>\n

Shoppers often will just mix and match to suit their own tastes, Jiang said.<\/p>\n

But there are limits<\/p>\n

The ascent of strong Chinese brands has emerged as a key challenge for foreign companies. From electric vehicles to smart phones<\/a> to athletic wear, local companies are fast gaining market share both at home and abroad.<\/p>\n

\u201cChinese will choose Chinese brands because they\u2019re better, better value, better quality, better pricing,\u201d said Rein.<\/p>\n

After the government declared that travelers should avoid trips to Japan, employees of state-owned companies and government agencies, as well as travel agencies, fell in line. Hundreds of flights operated by China\u2019s major state-owned airlines, and Japan-bound group tours, were cancelled.<\/p>\n

The number of Chinese visitors to Japan fell 45% in December from a year earlier, to about 330,400. Many Chinese are still traveling to Japan individually, despite earlier warnings from officials, often while keeping a low-profile on social media.<\/p>\n

___<\/p>\n

AP\u2019s Beijing newsroom contributed to this story.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"HONG KONG (AP) \u2014 In China, consumerism appears to outweigh nationalism regardless of how testy relations have become…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":418026,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[5713,84,891,15242,1294,154450,386,38136,48002,154451,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-418025","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-economy","8":"tag-beijing","9":"tag-business","10":"tag-china","11":"tag-chinese-officials","12":"tag-economy","13":"tag-jacob-cooke","14":"tag-japan","15":"tag-nationalism","16":"tag-ralph-lauren","17":"tag-shaun-rein","18":"tag-uk","19":"tag-united-kingdom","20":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/418025","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=418025"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/418025\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/418026"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=418025"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=418025"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=418025"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}