H&M pledges to win back China’s trust amid Xinjiang backlash

H&M pledged to regain Chinese shoppers’ trust Wednesday as it tried to tamp down a fiery backlash over its stance on human-rights abuses in the country’s Xinjiang region.

Chinese officials and consumers threatened the Swedish retailer with boycotts last week after its six-month-old statement about allegations of forced labor in Xinjiang resurfaced on social media. In a new statement addressing the blowup, H&M said it is “dedicated to regaining the trust and confidence” of its customers, colleagues and business partners in China, where its store locations were reportedly scrubbed from digital maps last week.