Fast-fashion giant Shein tumbles in Hong Kong debut

Fast-fashion retailer Shein fell more than 9% on its long-awaited Hong Kong trading debut Tuesday, having raised US$1.7 billion in a high-profile initial public offering (IPO) after its plans to list in New York and London failed amid regulatory scrutiny.

The Chinese-founded e-commerce giant was trading at HK$44.00 soon after the open, compared with its listing price of HK$48.56.

Known for its ultra-low prices and rapidly produced clothes, the firm finally won Beijing's approval in July to launch its IPO in Hong Kong.

Shein said the proceeds would be used to finance its technological capabilities and boost its international presence.

The online retailer moved its headquarters to Singapore between 2021 and 2022, a move analysts say was intended to avoid increasing global scrutiny of Chinese firms.

Its European customer base rose to 156 million average monthly users by the end of 2025, making it one of the continent's biggest e-commerce platforms alongside China's AliExpress and US titan Amazon, which have 193 million and around 180 million users respectively.

Shein reported a full-year net profit of US$2.06 billion in 2025 but swung to a US$99 million quarterly loss as the United States scrapped an import duty exemption on small packages.

The European Union last month imposed a duty of three euros (US$3.50) per item for packages valued at less than 150 euros.

And France will impose a fee on ultra-fast fashion items from Tuesday that could eventually reach almost 20 euros per garment, as the government targets major Asian e-commerce platforms.