Analysts at Credit Suisse upgraded their recommendation for shares of Boohoo to ‘outperform’, telling clients that Western governments looked set to step in and “level up the playing field” against Chinese fashion retail app Shein.
That app was capable of putting over 5,000 new styles on sales daily and substantially undercut rivals’ prices.
Indeed, the Swiss broker said the perceived threat posed by Shein was part of the reason behind the underperformance year-to-date in shares of Asos, Boohoo, and ABF.
It was also seen as a threat for the likes of H&M and Zara.
Among Shein’s non-competitive advantages were export and import taxes, sales taxes/VAT, subsidised shipping costs, and fewer restrictions in terms of sustainability and supply chain compliance – alongside questions around data and IP use.
Nevertheless Credit Suisse conceded the latter were widespread in the industry.
In any case, Credit Suisse did not rule out that western governments might follow the example of India’s decision in 2020 to ban the app.
