--- description: The Chinese economy is not in the best shape, but at least the country's sportswear market is seeing a boost in sales. title: The Market That Persists In the Waning Chinese Economy image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltacea7c3aeb553c9d/69886754bc6cfc5bbb3d9cee/nike.jpg?branch=production&width=1080&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Business](/section/business/) ## Business Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Nike](/tag/nike/) ## Nike Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # The Market That Persists In the Waning Chinese Economy by [Michal Addady / Fortune](/author/fortune/) ## Michal Addady / Fortune Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Oct 7, 2015 9:06 PM CUT  Nike sneakers on display. Nike sneakers on display.Bloomberg—Bloomberg via Getty Images by [Michal Addady / Fortune](/author/fortune/) ## Michal Addady / Fortune Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Oct 7, 2015 9:06 PM CUT Although China’s economy isn’t in the best shape, there is at least one market that investors shouldn’t be running away from: sportswear. The country’s increasing attraction towards athletics has resulted in a significant growth in sportswear sales, [_The Wall Street Journal_ reports](http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-10-06/former-twitter-ceo-dick-costolo-has-his-next-gig-writing-for-hbo-s-silicon-valley "undefined"). Retail sales in China increased by 10% overall in a three month period that ended in August, according to the article. Nike, the country’s most popular sportswear brand, saw [sales increase by 30%](http://fortune.com/2015/09/24/nike-china-sales-soar/ "undefined") to $886 million. The country’s best-selling local brand, Anta Sports Product, had a sales growth of 24%, and a less prominent local brand, Xtep International, saw sales grow by 12%. When China hosted the 2008 Summer Olympics, the country saw a similar rise in athletic gear, but it turned out to be a fleeting trend. Many brands that had over-invested were forced to close down stores in 2012 and 2013. Now sales are rising again. The number of marathons in the country more than doubled between 2011 and 2014, the Chinese Basketball Association’s finals had 50% more viewers this year than they did last year, and China was slated to host the 2022 Winter Olympics. The _Journal_ article adds that this new Chinese fascination with athletics and health is “more than a short-term fad.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4065415/sportswear-chinese-economy/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4065415/sportswear-chinese-economy/"},"headline":"The Market That Persists In the Waning Chinese Economy","datePublished":"2015-10-07T21:06:10.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T11:36:22.411Z","description":"The sportswear trend is seeing a recovery in China","url":"https://time.com/4065415/sportswear-chinese-economy/","keywords":["Nike","olympics","sales","health","athletics","pubdesk"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltacea7c3aeb553c9d/69886754bc6cfc5bbb3d9cee/nike.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Michal Addady / Fortune"}],"articleSection":"Business","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltacea7c3aeb553c9d/69886754bc6cfc5bbb3d9cee/nike.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Inside a Foot Locker Inc. Store Ahead Of Earnings","caption":"Inside a Foot Locker Inc. Store Ahead Of Earnings","creditText":"Bloomberg—Bloomberg via Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/business/","name":"Business"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/nike/","name":"Nike"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4065415/sportswear-chinese-economy/","name":"The Market That Persists In the Waning Chinese Economy"}}]}] ```