Partner James Zimmerman was quoted in "China’s Economy Weakens as Retail Sales Slide. Mixed Signals on Covid Adds to the Pressure," an article in MarketWatch regarding China's declining retail sales market.

Businesses have felt the effects for months. “China needs consumers to start spending money,” said James Zimmerman, a partner in the Beijing office of Perkins Coie and former chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce in China.

Retail sales, a rough measure of domestic consumption, contracted for the first time in six months, falling 0.5% year-over-year from September’s 2.5% rise. China’s engine of growth, industrial production, also weakened below expectations, falling to 5% from the previous month’s 6.3%.

“Retail sales are tanking because of constraints on mobility. If people can’t leave the house or their communities—including to travel abroad or to just go across town—they don’t spend money. Then, as the numbers keep tanking, businesses start to lay off workers or cut salaries, further impacting consumer confidence,” Zimmerman told Barron’s.

Read the full article on MarketWatch.