What's in a name.

H&M disappeared from the internet in China as the government raised pressure on shoe and clothing brands and announced sanctions Friday against British officials in a spiraling fight over complaints of abuses in the Xinjiang region. State media accused H&M and other brands of improperly profiting from China while criticizing it. South Korean athletic shoe brand FILA said Friday the company buys cotton from Xinjiang and will keep doing so. AdH&M's announcement last year that it no longer would use Xinjiang cotton cited the BCI's move to stop licensing cotton from the region because it was difficult to trace how it was produced. It was unclear why the party targeted H&M, whose expression of concern about Xinjiang was similar to that of other companies.

AdBeijing often attacks foreign clothing, auto, travel and other brands for actions by their governments or to pressure companies to conform to its official positions on Taiwan, Tibet and other sensitive issues. Western brands face pressure at home to distance themselves from possible abuses. AdThe Global Times said Burberry, Adidas, Nike and New Balance also made “cutting remarks” about Xinjiang cotton. In January, Washington imposed a ban on imports of cotton from Xinjiang, a major supplier to clothing producers for Western markets. Comments on the internet cited clothing brands Uniqlo of Japan and The Gap of the United States as other possible offenders.