(Yicai) Sept. 4 -- The Chinese commerce ministry has urged France to immediately stop implementing the anti-ultra-fast fashion law that took effect this month and resolve differences in the sustainable textile trade sector.

France’s anti-ultra-fast fashion law is suspected of violating the World Trade Organization's non-discrimination principle, as it adopts a double standard under the pretext of setting environmental protection and sustainability standards, Huang Ling, spokesperson for China’s Ministry of Commerce, said at a press conference yesterday.

Should France persist with the law, China will take necessary measures to safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese-invested companies, and France will bear all resulting consequences, Huang added.

In early July, France laid out a new legislation regulating fast fashion. Effective Sept. 1, the law defines fast fashion items based on two criteria -- the volume of clothing items placed on the market and the cost of repairing them relative to their purchase price -- and sets fees on the items according to the score they get based on the two criteria.

The fees range from 25 euro cents to EUR12 (29 US cents to USD14) per product, and will rise to EUR2 to EUR20 (USD2.30 to USD23) from 2030, capped at 50 percent of the pre-tax sales price.

The legislation also increases the contributions sellers and importers must pay to Refashion, France’s textile eco-organization, based on their product range, offer frequency, and repair initiatives, and requires foreign sellers to appoint a representative in France to handle the new obligations.

In addition, the legislation bans advertising ultra-fast fashion products, and prohibits influencers from promoting them. Violations are punishable by an administrative fine of up to EUR100,000 (USD116,265). These requirements do not apply to companies established in a European Union member state, Norway, Liechtenstein, and Iceland.

Critics in France have denounced the law for sparing European and domestic brands, such as Zara and H&M, and the European Commission has questioned whether the advertising provisions comply with EU law.

In late July, when asked to comment on French officials explicitly identifying cross-border e-commerce sites Temu, Shein, and AliExpress as the main targets of the new legislation, China’s MOFCOM urged France to abide by WTO rules and immediately correct the discriminatory practices against Chinese-invested firms.

The French law seriously distorts fair competition through legislation and reflects the recent policy direction of the EU and its member states, Zhao Yongsheng, director of the France Economic Studies Center at University of International Business and Economics, told Yicai in July. Chinese textile exporters to Europe should pay close attention to it, he noted.

Editor: Futura Costaglione