Imported fast fashion brands fail safety tests

Imported clothing from fast fashion brands, including Forever 21, Zara, H&M and Mango, were found to have the most failures in safety tests, the country's quality watchdog has announced.

The General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine found 12,305 cases of imported clothing that failed quality tests in the first half of this year, including 396 cases that failed safety tests, Li Jing, a spokesman for the administration, said at a news conference on Wednesday.

The top five brands that failed safety tests were fast fashion brands, accounting for 107 cases, or 27 percent of the total, Li said.

Clothing for infants and children also failed quality tests 1,442 times. The pH value of the clothing was the most common problem. Li said an unhealthy pH value of clothing for infants or children can harm their skin.

Clothing products imported from Italy were found to have the most severe problems, followed by those from Vietnam, South Korea and Bangladesh.