Ryan Knudson

And as Shein was preparing to open its Paris store, the company was embroiled in another controversy in France.

And government officials in France had strong reactions to it.

European consumer groups have flagged all kinds of other products sold on Shein that are not compliant with EU regulations, pointing to things like choking hazards, toxic metals, and USB chargers that overheated.

On the sex doll controversy, Shein said that it immediately took down the listings and has banned the sale of all sex dolls on its site.

Regarding those other products, Shein said they were all sold by third-party vendors and that they've since been removed.

It also commissioned its own tests and said it showed a higher rate of compliance for some items.

A judge ruled in December that the Shein app did not have to be temporarily suspended and could remain online.

Governments in Europe have also started reconsidering their own de minimis rules.

The EU is already considering closing the loophole, but Chelsea says it's taken on new urgency in recent months.

Will any of these changes, I mean, these changes to de minimis or these investigations into Xi'an and stuff, is any of that going to change the dynamics that have started to develop in the market where China's just selling tons and tons of stuff to Europeans?

Sheehan responded to a request for comment by saying it hasn't changed its strategy in Europe.

The company said its competitive edge stems from its small-batch manufacturing model and not the customs loophole.

And there's another challenge that European regulators will face.

For many European shoppers, they love all this cheap stuff.

Remember that amid all those protesters outside Xi'an were tons of customers waiting to get in.

So all of this kind of kicked off after Trump hit China with these tariffs, which is, you know, largely meant to help U.S.

manufacturers, but also in some ways designed to weaken China.

But it really hasn't.

So what does this story say about how China has fared in the trade war?

That's all for today, Wednesday, January 7th.