Raphael Stevens

Shein is looking to convince U.K. lawmakers that it takes product safety seriously after it clashed with members of Parliament over its supply chain and recalled a dangerous hair dryer.
The China-founded company said it had conducted more than 2 million product safety tests last year and terminated third-party sellers on its marketplace who did not comply with standards.
It’s unclear if those tests were for products Shein sold, which would be standard practice, or if they were for items sold by third-party sellers, which would make it an outlier in the industry.

A shopper carries a bag with promotional merchandise while visiting fashion retailer Shein’s Christmas bus tour, in Manchester, Britain, December 13, 2024. 
Temilade Adelaja | Reuters

Shein is ramping up its charm offensive again as the fast-fashion giant eyes a public listing in London as soon as this year. 
The retailer issued a press release on Friday detailing the steps it’s taking to keep the items it sells safe. The announcement came about a week after its first product safety recall in the U.S. since 2021. 

Shein said it conducted more than 2 million product safety tests last year using industry-leading labs such as Bureau Veritas and Intertek, adding that its vendors are required to submit documentation for items like toys, baby products, medical devices and electronics. 
Shein made the announcement, which included details on its sustainability initiatives and a new nonprofit foundation it set up, as the company looks to win over lawmakers in the U.K. and ease concerns that it’s selling unsafe products that are made with forced labor. 
Last week, Shein recalled more than 300 hair dryer brushes because they posed an electrocution or shock hazard to consumers. The Teckwe Hair Dryer Brush appeared to be a so-called dupe of a similar product sold by Dyson. No injuries were reported and Shein is offering a refund to impacted customers. 
A spokesperson for Shein told CNBC the company conducted safety tests on products it sells itself and did “risk-based, randomized testing” on items sold by third-party vendors on its marketplace before their listing.
Product safety testing is common for items that a retailer sells, even if they’re online only, because they could be held liable for defects under consumer protection laws in the U.S. On the other hand, a retailer’s liability is less clear for third-party sellers on an online marketplace, which makes product testing prior to an item’s listing unusual.

Shein’s decision to conduct product safety tests on items sold by third-party sellers makes it stand out in an industry that has been rife with safety concerns. Typically, online marketplaces just require sellers to conduct their own testing and provide documentation to support it.
Shein added in its press release that it terminated more than 260 sellers on its marketplace over the last year for not meeting compliance requirements. 

Shein faces U.K. scrutiny

Shein’s campaign to show it takes product safety and sustainability seriously comes as it prepares to go public in the U.K. — and follows a similar charm offensive in the U.S. before its doomed initial public offering bid there.
Earlier this month, U.K. lawmakers criticized attorneys for Shein when they appeared before a British parliamentary hearing and evaded questions about the company’s supply chain and whether it sells products made with cotton from China, The Associated Press reported. 
Shein’s general counsel in Europe, Yinan Zhu, repeatedly declined to say whether the company’s products contain cotton from Xinjiang and whether the company prohibits suppliers from sourcing raw materials in the region, which has become notorious for its Uyghur detention camps. 
When asked whether the company believes there is forced labor in Xinjiang, Zhu said it wasn’t the company’s place to have a “geopolitical debate” and repeated a line Shein often uses when grilled on its supply chain, “We comply with the laws and regulations in the countries that we operate in.”
Committee Chairman Liam Byrne said Zhu’s refusal to answer questions left lawmakers “horrified” and gave them “zero confidence” in the integrity of Shein’s supply chain.  
“The reluctance to answer basic questions has frankly bordered on contempt,” Byrne said.
Throughout 2023, when Shein was still hoping for a U.S. IPO, it commonly spoke publicly about its cotton supply chain and the tests it had conducted to ensure it wasn’t sourcing from banned regions. It even told CNBC it had stopped sourcing cotton from China altogether. 
Shein did not make similar statements in the parliamentary hearing.

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The WNBA has filed a trademark application for the name “Detroit Shock.”
The filing comes amid reports that Detroit Pistons owner Tom Gores submitted a bid for a WNBA expansion team.
At least 10 cities have shown interest in launching a new professional women’s basketball team.

The Renaissance Center (complex of skyscrapers with the Chrevrolet sign) by the Detroit River.
Roberto Machado Noa | Lightrocket | Getty Images

As cities across the country vie for the next Women’s National Basketball Association team, the league quietly filed a trademark application this week for the name “Detroit Shock.”
The filing, dated Thursday, notes the intended use is for a basketball team, merchandise, jerseys and in-arena signage that could appear on TV or radio broadcasts. It could offer clues into the league’s ultimate decision for the location of a new franchise.

On Friday, Detroit Pistons owner Tom Gores submitted a bid for the Motor City to host a new team. The ownership group would be led by Gores and also includes Detroit Lions principal owner and chair Sheila Ford Hamp; former Detroit Pistons stars Grant Hill and Chris Webber; General Motors CEO Mary Barra; and Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff.
“Detroit is a sports town that loves its teams deeply and consistently shows up with unwavering passion,” Gores said in a statement.
The WNBA and Detroit Pistons did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment on the trademark application.
The new trademark application by the WNBA is the only submission from the professional women’s basketball league since early December, according to Josh Gerben, a trademark attorney at Gerben IP, who is not involved with the specific filing.
Unlike other professional sports leagues where individual teams own their own trademark filings, the WNBA holds the rights to all names and logos for the league’s franchises, according to Gerben.

The Detroit Shock logo on a T-shirt.
Courtesy: Detroit Shock

“Circumstantial evidence would be that [Detroit’s] is a winning bid and they’re very much planning on getting this going to have filed that trademark application,” Gerben told CNBC.
However, Gerben said the filing could also be a way for the league to protect itself against “squatters” or others trying to use the name.
Another trademark application was filed for the “Detroit Shock” by an individual named Ryan Reed in July 2023, but that trademark has yet to be approved. A person with the same name, purportedly based in Detroit, identifies as the founder of a women’s basketball league on LinkedIn.
The Detroit Shock were a WNBA team based in Auburn Hills, Michigan, from 1998 to 2009. The team won three WNBA Championships in 2003, 2006 and 2008. In 2009, the franchise moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma, where they played until 2015. Today, they play in Arlington, Texas, as the Dallas Wings.
WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert said at the WNBA Finals in October that at least 10 cities had expressed interest in launching an expansion team.
“We’re not in a huge rush. We’d like to bring it in ’27 or no later than ’28,” Engelbert said at the time in regard to adding a 16th team.
Cleveland, Kansas City, Philadelphia, St. Louis, Houston, Austin, Nashville and Milwaukee are among the locations seeking to bring women’s professional basketball to their cities.

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Sales of watches and jewelry at luxury giant LVMH rebounded in the latest quarter and continued to shine into January, according to several of the company’s brand CEOs.
The CEOs of Tiffany & Co., TAG Heuer and Bulgari and the director of watches for Louis Vuitton weigh in on China sales, tariffs and luxury best-sellers.

After a year of declines, sales of watches and jewelry at luxury giant LVMH rebounded in the latest quarter and continued to shine into January, according to several of the company’s brand CEOs.
In its earnings call this week, LVMH reported that sales for its watches and jewelry group increased 3%, after falling in the previous quarters. The division outperformed the company’s core fashion and leather goods segment, which was down 1% during the quarter, as well as wine and spirits, which declined 8%.

In interviews during LVMH Watch Week in New York, the CEOs of several of the conglomerate’s watch and jewelry brands said they’re increasingly optimistic about 2025. While China remains slow, they said a rebound in spending by Americans — both in the U.S. and Europe — is driving strong demand for both watches and jewelry.
“I have to say that I’ve been positively surprised by the start of the year,” said Jean-Christophe Babin, CEO of Bulgari, which is owned by LVMH.

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Anthony Ledru, the CEO of Tiffany & Co., which LVMH acquired in 2021, said he’s also seeing renewed consumer confidence among the American wealthy after the U.S. presidential election.
“I think it brings clarity and probably a greater consumer confidence,” Ledru said. “We need that feel-good factor to succeed in the luxury world.”
Of course, there are risks to the bright outlook. U.S. tariffs are the big unknown for high-end watches, which are mostly made in Switzerland, as well as for French luxury goods. The Trump administration has threatened across-the-board tariffs in Europe.

Yet for now, watch and jewelry makers are launching a barrage of new products in hopes of a strong 2025. Louis Vuitton’s watch division launched its new “Tambour Taiko Spin Time” collection, which features “jumping cubes” for numbers that were inspired by old airport flap displays. The company’s Gérald Genta line launched the new “Gentissima Oursin Fire Opal,” made from 137 orange and red opal gems, mined from Mexican volcanoes.

Louis Vuitton “Tambour Taiko Spin Time” in Hawk’s Eye.

Gérald Genta Gentissima Oursin Fire Opal.

Jean Arnault, director of Louis Vuitton watches, who also oversees the Genta and Daniel Roth brands, said he has a decades-long plan to make Louis Vuitton one of the most respected watchmakers among top collectors — known for high complications and craftsmanship, and commanding high prices.
“Before Louis Vuitton rhymes with watchmaking in the wider world, we’ll probably wait a whole generation until that happens,” he said. “What’s important to me is making sure that they know when Louis Vuitton makes watches, they know they are very high quality, that they have no doubt. We are focusing on high complications and pieces with high price points.”
TAG Heuer, which just announced a partnership with Formula 1 to replace Rolex as the official timekeeper, said it’s already seen a boost in sales since the announcement in October. At LVMH Watch Week, the company launched a new Formula 1 collection, with bright dials and chronograph movements. Antoine Pin, CEO of TAG Heuer, said the sales benefits from the F1 announcement were literally “overnight.”
“My surprise was that any announcement we’re making with F1 is immediately leading to significant reactions,” he said. “And clearly, the beauty of social media is that you can quickly measure the impact. And we’ve seen massive expansion of reaction and very positive reactions. So it was a very good decision.”

TAG Heuer F1 model.

On the jewelry side, Tiffany saw a 9% increase in same-store sales in the fourth quarter, LVMH said during its earnings call. Tiffany’s flagship “Landmark” store, on Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue, saw strong sales over the holiday season with long lines from visitors. The newly renovated store, which LVMH spent hundreds of millions to reimagine, now features a popular Blue Box Cafe by Daniel Boulud and a new VIP suite on the 10th floor, offering views of Central Park, fine art, rare Tiffany lamps and high-jewelry pieces priced for six or seven figures.
Tiffany CEO Ledru said the company’s average price point has doubled since LVMH acquired the jewelry maker. By upgrading the company’s retail stores, focusing on high-end jewelry and launching its new “icons” collections, based on historical Tiffany designs, the brand has been able to quickly move up-market.
Its hottest seller is the “hardware” collection, especially its gold chain-link necklace that sells for over $19,000, Ledru said.
“It’s a pretty drastic transformation,” he said. “We went after a client that spends more, spends more time in the store and engages at a higher price point. It’s demanding. It’s a very particular ecosystem. The more you go up, the more you need to have amazing stores, amazing staff, amazing products, amazing events and communication that aligns with all of that.”
Bulgari, whose largest market has traditionally been China, is hoping to see a sales lift during the year of the snake in the Chinese zodiac, which officially began with the Chinese Lunar New Year on Wednesday.
Bulgari CEO Babin said that while the Chinese economy is “tough” right now, there are signs that government stimulus could start rebuilding consumer confidence this year.
He said Bulgari’s popular “Serpenti Viper” collections, modeled after viper snakes, are top-sellers.
“Serpenti is the icon of Bulgari, and this is the year of the snake, so this should be the year of Bulgari,” he said.
The rising wealth held by women around the world, from higher earnings, entrepreneurship and inheritances, is also reshaping the company’s client base. While a large share of sales used to be to men buying jewelry as gifts, now women are buying for themselves.
“Today you have a real gender equality in most countries,” Babin said. “Women’s purchasing power is very similar to men’s purchasing power, which is a revolution in luxury.”

Tiffany “Bird on a flying Tourbillon

On the subject of tariffs, LVMH CEOs said they have to wait and see what policies are announced before making plans. Yet they said they work with tariffs and duties in countries around the world, so a hike in the U.S. may not be too disruptive.
What’s more, Americans are already traveling to Europe to buy luxury goods, driven in part by the strong dollar. If tariffs become high enough in the U.S., wealthy Americans might start choosing to buy their Bulgari bracelets or Louis Vuitton watches in Europe.
“A lot of our clients travel around the world,” Jean Arnault said. “So if they buy a piece in the U.S. or they buy a piece in Europe, it’s the same for us.” More

As President Donald Trump’s threat to impose 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico as soon as Saturday looms, the global automotive industry is collectively holding its breath.
Regardless of whether Trump implements the duties, automakers such as General Motors — the country’s top-selling automaker — want clarity so they can act accordingly.
On a percentage of sales basis, German automaker Volkswagen is the most exposed to tariff risk, followed by Nissan Motor and Stellantis, S&P Mobility reports.

A car carrier trailer waits in line next to the border wall before crossing to the United States at Otay commercial port in Tijuana, Baja California state, Mexico, on Jan. 22, 2025.
Guillermo Arias | AFP | Getty Images

DETROIT — As President Donald Trump’s threat to impose 25% tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico as soon as Saturday looms, the global automotive industry is collectively holding its breath.
For months, automakers have been taking a “wait-and-see” approach to the Trump administration’s potential tariffs. Trump promised to impose duties upon his inauguration this month, then he set a target date of Feb. 1 for levies on the key U.S. trading partners.

Regardless of whether Trump imposes tariffs, automakers such as General Motors — the top seller in the U.S. — want clarity so they can plan their business around the policy.
A tariff is a tax on imports, or foreign goods, brought into the United States. The companies importing the goods pay the tariffs, and some fear the companies would simply pass any additional costs on to consumers — raising the cost of vehicles and potentially reducing demand.
Uncertainty about trade took a toll on GM on Tuesday, when the automaker’s stock had one of its worst days in years even after it beat Wall Street’s expectations for its 2025 guidance and its top- and bottom-line for the fourth quarter.
“Our key take from GM’s 4Q [earnings] result is that while the opportunity for GM is highly compelling, US policy uncertainty must be navigated for the time being,” Barclays analyst Dan Levy said in an investor note Wednesday.

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GM did not account for potential tariffs in its guidance, which CFO Paul Jacobson described as a “cautious” approach given no duties on North American goods have actually been implemented.

Both Jacobson and GM CEO Mary Barra said the company has contingency plans for any actions, but that wasn’t enough to appease anxious investors.
“There’s just so much noise,” Jacobson told investors Tuesday, citing the inauguration and California wildfires, among other issues and events. “We’re being cautious until we get a little bit more smooth data from the marketplace just because January was so noisy.”

‘Massive impact’

Tariffs could have a massive effect on the global automotive industry and potentially reduce earnings for companies such as GM, which has significant manufacturing operations across North America.
“Regardless of timing, these blanket tariffs would have a massive impact on the auto industry,” S&P Global Mobility said in a report this week. “Virtually no [automaker] or supplier” operating in North America would be immune, according to the report.

Flanked by Blackstone CEO Stephen Schwarzman (L) and General Motors CEO Mary Barra (R), U.S. President Donald Trump holds a strategy and policy forum with chief executives of major U.S. companies at the White House in Washington February 3, 2017.
Kevin Lamarque | Reuters

Most major automakers have factories in the U.S. However, they still rely heavily on imports from other countries including Mexico to meet American consumer demand.
Nearly every major automaker operating in the U.S. has at least one plant in Mexico, including the six top-selling automakers, which accounted for more than 70% of U.S. sales in 2024.
The industry is deeply integrated between the countries, with Mexico importing 49.4% of all auto parts from the U.S. In turn, Mexico exports 86.9% of its auto parts production to the U.S., according to the International Trade Administration.
Wells Fargo estimates that 25% tariffs on Mexico and Canada imports would cost the traditional Detroit automaker billions of dollars a year. The firm estimates the impact of 5%, 10% and 25% tariffs on GM, Ford Motor and Chrysler parent Stellantis would collectively be $13 billion, $25 billion and $56 billion, respectively.
S&P Global Mobility, formerly IHS Markit, estimates a 25% duty on a $25,000 vehicle from Canada or Mexico would add $6,250 to its cost — some if not most of which could be passed on to the consumer.

Automakers most at risk

S&P Mobility reports plants in Canada and Mexico produce roughly 5.3 million vehicles, with about 70% — nearly 4 million — destined for the U.S.
Mexico accounted for a majority of those vehicles, as five automakers — Ford, GM, Stellantis, Toyota Motor and Honda — produced only an estimated 1.3 million light-duty vehicles in 2024 in Canada, largely for the U.S. market, according to a Canadian manufacturing nonprofit research group.
Some of those automakers also heavily rely on production in Mexico, but not all producers would face the same disruptions. On a percentage of sales basis, German automaker Volkswagen is the most exposed to tariff risk in Mexico, followed by Nissan Motor and Stellantis, S&P Global Mobility reports.
“We are working, obviously, on scenarios,” Antonio Filosa, head of Stellantis’ North American operations, said Jan. 10. “But yes, we need to await his decisions and after the decision of Mr. Trump and his administration, we will work accordingly.”
Here are the automakers that are most exposed to tariffs on vehicles imported from Mexico, based on the percentage of their U.S. sales being produced south of the border:

Volkswagen: 43%
Nissan: 27%
Stellantis: 23%
GM: 22%
Ford: 15%
Honda: 13%
Toyota: 8%
Hyundai: 8% More

The Food and Drug Administration approved Vertex Pharmaceuticals’ non-opioid painkiller pill, a new alternative for pain relief that comes without the risk of addiction. 
It’s a milestone after a long history of unsuccessful efforts to develop painkillers without the destructive dependency of opioids, which have caused a horrific epidemic in the U.S.
Vertex’s drug is specifically approved for the treatment of moderate-to-severe acute pain, which is usually caused by injury, surgery, illness, trauma or painful medical procedures and is likely to ease with time.

A sign hangs in front of the world headquarters of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in Boston.
Brian Snyder | Reuters

The Food and Drug Administration on Thursday approved Vertex Pharmaceuticals’ non-opioid painkiller pill, a new alternative for pain relief that comes without the risk of addiction. 
Vertex is now the first drugmaker in decades to gain U.S. approval for a new type of pain medicine. It’s a milestone after a long history of mostly unsuccessful efforts to develop painkillers without the destructive dependency of cheap and widely available opioids, which have caused a horrific epidemic of abuse and overdose in the U.S.

Vertex’s drug, Journavx, is specifically approved for the treatment of moderate-to-severe acute pain, which is usually caused by injury, surgery, illness, trauma or painful medical procedures and likely eases with time. Around 80 million patients are prescribed a medicine for their moderate-to-severe acute pain every year in the U.S., according to Vertex. 
Almost 10% of patients with acute pain who are treated initially with an opioid will go on to have prolonged opioid use, and roughly 85,000 people will develop opioid use disorder annually, Vertex said in a statement.
“We have the opportunity to change the paradigm of acute pain management and establish a new standard of care,” Dr. Reshma Kewalramani, Vertex CEO, said in a statement.
Vertex said Journavx will have a list price of $15.50 per 50-milligram pill. Wall Street analysts have said that the medication could become a blockbuster drug if it wins approval from regulators, estimating its annual sales could exceed $1 billion. 
The experience of pain starts in a nerve ending, and the body detects the pressure and sends a signal to the spinal cord and then the brain. Vertex’s treatment works by blocking pain signals at their origin before they reach the brain. That’s different from opioids, which act directly on the brain to block pain, triggering the brain’s rewards centers in a way that can feed addiction.

The approval underscores the “FDA’s commitment to approving safe and effective alternatives to opioids for pain management,” said Dr. Jacqueline Corrigan-Curay, acting director of the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, in a release.
Vertex’s painkiller was more effective than placebo at reducing the intensity of pain after 48 hours in two late-stage studies on more than 1,000 patients who had abdominoplasties, also known as “tummy tucks,” and roughly another thousand in people who had bunion surgery. Those two procedures are commonly used in studies of people with acute pain.
The painkiller, however, failed to meet the secondary goal in both trials of reducing pain when compared to a combination of the opioid drug hydrocodone, which is frequently abused, and acetaminophen, the basis for popular pain medications such as Tylenol.
In both trials, rates of adverse side effects were lower in those who received Vertex’s drug compared to people who took a placebo. The most commonly reported adverse events among people who received Journavx were itching, muscle spasms and rash, among others, according to the FDA.
In a separate phase three study, more than 83% of patients said in a survey that the drug was good, very good or excellent at easing pain. Those people had undergone various surgical or non-surgical procedures.
The bigger opportunity for Vertex may be to win FDA approval in chronic pain. That’s an area where the risk of addiction to prescription opioids can be greater, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 
In 2023, the company’s painkiller produced positive results in a mid-stage trial in diabetes patients suffering from a chronic nerve condition. More

The plane crash Wednesday between a passenger jet and a military helicopter is bringing long-brewing concerns over congested U.S. airspace into a full-blown crisis.
Airline executives have pushed the government to modernize air traffic control and alleviate congestion in some of the busiest air corridors in the U.S.

Emergency response units search the crash site of the American Airlines plane on the Potomac River after the plane crashed on approach to Reagan National Airport on Jan. 30, 2025.
Andrew Harnik | Getty Images

As rescuers continued retrieving bodies out of the frigid Potomac River on Thursday, the deadliest commercial air disaster in the U.S. since 2001 is bringing long-brewing concerns over congested U.S. airspace into a full-blown crisis.
Just before 9 p.m. ET on Wednesday, an American Airlines regional jet collided with a military helicopter near Washington, D.C.’s Reagan National Airport. There were no survivors on either the Bombardier CRJ700 regional jet, which carried 60 passengers and four crew members, or on the Army Black Hawk helicopter, which was carrying three people, officials said.

Read more about the American Airlines plane collision with an Army helicopter

A series of close calls at airports in recent years has raised alarms among airlines, regulators and lawmakers. It is not immediately clear what led to the deadly collision on Wednesday. A full investigation could take months, if not longer than a year. Officials on Thursday did not blame air traffic control for the deadly crash.
In one of the recent incidents that raised concerns, a JetBlue Airways plane starting its takeoff roll at Reagan National Airport in April came within a few hundred feet of a Southwest Airlines flight, which was told to cross the runway.
Despite those close calls, there has not been a major fatal commercial airplane crash on U.S. soil since February 2009. Wednesday’s crash was the deadliest since November 2001.

A view of the Potomac River from Reagan National Airport.
CNBC, Google Earth

“The system is as safe as it has ever been,” Southwest Airlines CEO Bob Jordan said in an interview with CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street” on Thursday morning.
Airline executives have pushed consecutive administrations to modernize air traffic control and hire more staffers to help alleviate congestion in some of the busiest corridors in the U.S. Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport’s main runway is the busiest in the U.S., according to the area’s airport authority.
“The system has been in need of modernization for literally decades now,” Jordan said. “You’ve got equipment that goes back to the 1960s, and modernizing the equipment actually allows for better management of the airspace, more throughput, so more efficiency.” More