PARIS (AP) — France is asking the European Union's executive arm to launch an investigation into how the fast-fashion giant Shein was able to sell illegal items including child-like sex dolls and weapons on its sprawling online marketplace.
Two French ministers have sent a letter to Henna Virkkunen, the European Commission executive vice-president for tech sovereignty, urging her to take action against the retailer.
They called on the European Commission “to fully exercise its prerogatives, including through the adoption of interim measures against the platform,” according to the letter provided Thursday by France's finance ministry.
The French government on Wednesday started a procedure to suspend access to Shein's online marketplace until it proves its content conforms to French law.
The French ministers, Roland Lescure and Anne Le Henanff, said Shein is bound by the Digital Services Act, the EU's rulebook designed to clean up online platforms and keep internet users safe.
French officials said that ina addition to sex dolls with childlike features, they also found “large quantities” of illegal “Class A” weapons on Shein’s platform — including firearms, big knives and machetes, as well as war material. The finance ministry said if the prohibited items remain, authorities may suspend the site in France.
“The repeated marketing of illegal content shows that the platform has failed to comply with its obligations under the Digital Services Act (DSA), particularly in terms of protecting minors, combating illegal content, and ensuring the traceability of its sellers,” the ministers said.
Shein was added last year to a list of companies that need extra scrutiny as the 27-nation bloc's executive arm classed it as a “very large online platform.”
Because it has more than 45 million European users, Shein has to obey the most stringent requirements, including taking specific measures to protect online users and assessing and mitigating any “systemic risks” from its services, such as limiting the sale of illegal or counterfeit products.
If it does not comply with DSA rules, Shein could be suspended as well as fined up to 6% of its annual profits.
Shein, founded in China in 2012 and now based in Singapore, has pledged to work with French authorities to “address any concerns swiftly.”
People visit the BHV department store as fast fashion powerhouse Shein opens its first permanent store, Wednesday, Nov. 5, 2025 in Paris. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)
Frederic Merlin, CEO of SGM group which owns the BHV department store, answers reporters before fast fashion powerhouse Shein opens its first permanent store Wednesday, Nov. 5, 2025 in Paris. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)
A protester holds a placard reading "No style worth slavery" in the BHV department store as fast fashion Shein opens its first physical store, Wednesday, Nov. 5, 2025 in Paris. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)
NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks are hanging near their records Wednesday as oil prices fall and ease the pressure on households and businesses worldwide.
The S&P 500 slipped 0.1% below its all-time high set the day before. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 183 points, or 0.4%, as of 12:56 p.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was 0.1% lower.
Stocks of companies with big fuel bills helped lead the way on hopes that lower oil prices will remove a big drag on their profits. Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings climbed 5.7%, and United Airlines rallied 7.3%. Delta Air Lines rose 3.7% and is on track to set an all-time high.
The price for a barrel of Brent crude oil fell 4.1% to $95.48 after the ceasefire between the United States and Iran appeared to hold despite the U.S. military launching what it called “self-defense” strikes in southern Iran. A barrel of benchmark U.S. crude fell even more, 4.2%, to $89.69 on hopes that the United States and Iran can reach an agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and allow oil tankers to exit the Persian Gulf for deliveries again.
Stocks have been able to run to records despite the painful inflation and uncertainty caused by high oil prices largely because companies have reported surprisingly strong profits for the start of 2026, and the forecast is for them to continue.
Bath & Body Works rallied 11.2%, and Abercrombie & Fitch climbed 11.8% after both reported bigger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. That's even as U.S. consumers continue to say they're feeling discouraged about the economy and inflation.
Lululemon Athletica rose 3.6% after reaching a deal with its founder, Chip Wilson, where it will add a former chief marketing officer of ESPN and a former co-CEO of On to its board of directors.
On the losing side of Wall Street was Dick's Sporting Goods, which dropped 4.9% despite delivering a profit for the latest quarter that edged past expectations. Analysts pointed to how much profit it wrung out of each $1 in revenue, which some called a bit weak.
Oil-and-gas stocks also sank, hurt by the dropping prices for crude. Exxon Mobil fell 1.4%, and Chevron slipped 0.8%. Halliburton dropped 3% to bring its gain for the year so far back toward 40%.
In the bond market, Treasury yields eased after falling oil prices took pressure off inflation. The yield on the 10-year Treasury slipped to 4.48% from 4.50% late Tuesday and from 4.67% roughly a week ago.
It’s a respite following recent gains for yields in bond markets worldwide, which threatened to slow economies and undercut prices for stocks and all kinds of other investments. High yields have already forced the average long-term U.S. mortgage rate to its most expensive level since last summer, and they could curtail companies’ borrowing to build the artificial-intelligence data centers that have supported the U.S. economy’s growth recently.
In stock markets abroad, indexes were mixed across Europe and Asia. South Korea's Kospi was one of the world's best performers and jumped 2.3% after SK Hynix, which is a big beneficiary of the artificial-intelligence boom, soared 9.3%.
A day before, Micron Technology surged to become the latest Big Tech company to be worth more than $1 trillion on AI excitement. Its stock has more than tripled already in 2026, and analysts at UBS said Tuesday it could soar even more because of how fundamentally AI has improved demand for computer memory.
AP Business Writer Elaine Kurtenbach contributed to this report.
Trader Edward Curran, left, and specialist Meric Greenbaum, center, work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
A person looks at an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei index at a securities firm Monday, May 25, 2026, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
A dealer walks past near the screens showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
A dealer walks past near the screens showing the foreign exchange rates at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
A dealer walks past near the screens showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
A dealer stands near the screens showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won and the Korean Securities Dealers Automated Quotations (KOSDAQ) at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
