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The purpose of this paper is to measure the effects of WTO accession on the economic growth of China, and the paths of those effects.

This article carries out a theoretical and empirical analysis on the effect on China's economic growth from WTO accession. First is about the theoretical analysis of the paths of those effects which WTO accession has on China's economic growth. Next is to make empirical test about the effects through dummy variable regression and cross variable analysis.

WTO accession has a remarkable and a positive effect on China's economic growth through the following specific paths, i.e. foreign trade path, economic system reform path and FDI path. But so far entry into WTO has not positively influenced China's economic growth through technological innovation.

Based on the theoretical and empirical analysis, this article puts forward relative policies and suggestions on what China should do in the future.

Apparel exports by OECD countries and imports of developing countries, the counter‐flow of international trade in apparel, were examined. Application of a gravity model indicated that proximity was important in determining the marketing destinations of apparel exports of OECD countries. There was a large variation in apparel imports to the developing countries from the developed countries, and while generally increasing, there were also large fluctuations over time. The trade flow was explained by differentiation of products and inequality of income in the developing countries. Regression analysis was used to determine the factors which influenced apparel imports of developing countries from OECD countries. The result indicated that income level was the most important determinant, and that apparel imports were income elastic. Market conditions, and remarkably, market barrier, had no significant impact.

In this paper expenditures of families in Shanghai on 12 categories of clothing in four seasons were examined, based on data gathered from quarterly interviews with 292 families. It was found that there were differences among family members and among the four seasons in clothing expenditures. The relative market sizes of the various categories of clothes were also investigated.

Chinese tourists have become the greatest driving force behind global tourism. An increasing number of luxury fashion brands regard these tourists as a potentially significant segment of status-conscious consumers. Yet a limited number of marketing studies have addressed the significance of the intrinsic motivation that drives these tourist consumers to consume luxury goods. This study investigates the significant intrinsic factors that affect the luxury goods buying behavior of tourist consumers. Data are collected from 284 tourist consumers and analyzed by using the exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and cluster analysis. The EFA purified the measurement instruments to four factor attributes, namely, self-satisfaction, possession obsessiveness, status consciousness and personal differentness. The cluster analysis identified three groups of tourist consumers with distinctive behavioral segmentation criteria: ‘shopping hedonists’, ‘ego-defended achievers’ and ‘conspicuous fashionistas’. These findings provide managerial implications for building sustainable luxury businesses and competitive strategies tailored for tourist consumers.

Apparel imports of China from the world, especially from the OECD countries, are investigated in this paper. The relationship between apparel imports of China and personal income of its people is examined with a simple OLS regression model, and it is found that the imports are significantly influenced by income level, and the imports are income elastic, thus predicting accelerated growth of imports as income is expected to rise. Reasons for such imports are analyzed, and it is believed that the theory of preference similarity can be applied in conjunction with rising income level and increasing income inequality. In addition, implications of growing imports to both domestic and foreign apparel manufacturers are analyzed. Information of the paper should be of interest to policy makers and of use to apparel producers and marketers.

In this paper the attitude of university students towards Internet shopping of apparel was investigated. Development and challenges in marketing apparel online in Hong Kong was discussed. Data were collected in a survey with 330 university students. Their apparel consumption patterns were examined. Internet usage was analyzed. The paper was focused on the reasons the students had not shopped online and their attitude towards Internet shopping. Obstacles for their adoption of this new shopping channel were identified. The findings shed light on how to increase the attractiveness of apparel web site design, which should benefit both e-tailers and online shoppers.

Modern organizations face more and more challenges in today's globalizing markets. Many textile firms operate collaboratively as a globally-networked virtual team to sustain their competitiveness. How to select and utilize a diversity of information and communication technologies (ICTs) to facilitate collaboration among these textile virtual teams is a critical issue to these enterprises. This paper explores the criteria of ICT adoption in collaboration processes from both theoretical and practical perspectives. First, ICTs theories of telecommunications are reviewed to conclude background knowledge and examine contextual requirements for ICTs. We find that the conveyance of social cues, the ability of fostering member involvement and coordinating interruptions, and the user-friendly interface of communication technology are crucial to the remote collaboration among textile firms. Second, empirical in-depth interviews with 20 practitioners in textile and apparel companies are conducted. Then, combining the findings, we discuss the features of primary ICTs adopted in practice at present. We recommend six essential facets in ICTs adoption during textile virtual team communication (i.e. synchronicity, medium richness, connectedness, disruptiveness, ease of use, and cost). We also suggest how these ICTs can be deployed in line with organizational and individual factors to facilitate textile virtual collaboration.

In this paper the impacts of entry to the WTO on the textile and apparel exports of China are examined. Generally in the short run the growth of exports will not be significant. The US and European countries which have imposed quota on China's exports account for a small proportion of China's total exports, thus the effects of lift of quota as a result of China's entry to the WTO will be limited. Acceleration of quota growth will only bring a small amount of increase in exports. Even after the phase-out of MFA, there will be other obstacles and barriers that will prevent a significant expansion of exports of China. Implications of these factors are also discussed.

Major findings of a project, Investigating The Markets Of Denim Wear In Hong Kong And China, sponsored by Institute of Textiles and Clothing, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, are discussed. The project was conducted in Hong Kong and six other major cities in China, including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Harbin, Xi'an and Chengdu. Total sample size was 3,623. Three aspects of denim wear consumption were investigated and are discussed in the paper: dressing habit of Chinese consumers in denim wear, their consumption pattern, and brand awareness. Based on the findings, marketing implications are discussed as well. This information should be of use to manufacturers and retailers of denim wear and denim products for more effective marketing.