International norms clash with China’s consumer nationalism

This study interrogates the motivations and impacts of China’s state-sponsored political boycotting on the behaviour of multi-national corporations (MNCs). In 2016–2021, Lancome, Cathay Pacific, H&M, and the National Basketball Association (NBA) were exposed to political boycotts due to their stance on human rights and political issues in China. In these incidents, the state media’s censure and consumers’ political boycotting jointly generated a spiral of outrage. Lancome and Cathay Pacific reversed their positions in accordance with China’s demands. Conversely, H&M and NBA stood by their stance. Drawing on the four case studies, this article argues that the tug of war between China’s markets and the liberal world’s values influenced an MNC response. It contributes to the political consumerism literature in three ways. First, it examines political consumerism in non-democratic contexts. Second, it offers nuances of political boycotts by pinpointing the dynamics between the state’s mobilisation and consumers’ motivation. Third, it underlines the conditions that make MNCs susceptible to political boycotts. Meanwhile, the article also speaks to the economic statecraft literature. Political boycotting is an underexplored instrument in China’s economic statecraft. By pressuring MNCs to conform to the Chinese rules, state-sponsored political boycotts gradually contest norms in the liberal international order.