At US’ biggest retail show, the China question never really goes away

The world’s largest retail show held last week in New York saw a mood of measured optimism amid the bustle, cheap swag and canned smiles – a sense that the worst of last year’s tariff turmoil was over and that Chinese goods would continue to fill Walmart and Costco, even if they had to travel through a third country.“I feel more optimistic for this year,” said Teagan Pollard, an IT expert with TP Industries, which sells vaping equipment from China. “The economy and tariffs have been rough. But something’s got to break, hopefully in the right direction.”The National Retail Federation (NRF) showcase event, held in this nation of shopaholics, saw some 42,000 attendees descend on a space equivalent to five football fields, as corporate booths competed for attention with wine bars, talking robots, couches and extra thick carpeting for clients’ sore feet.“Since the beginning of 2025, people were apprehensive about the way tariffs would play out,” said John Martin, a consultant with supply-chain software company Infios. “In 2026, people have changed their supply chains. So there’s less apprehension.”That has put a spotlight on the American consumer, which chugs along through thick and thin, the secret sauce powering the world’s largest economy.Pictured at NRF 2026: Retail’s Big Show are (from left), Ken Pilot from Ken Pilot Ventures, Sarah Travis from Target, Miguel Almeida from Nordstrom and Frank Bedo from Best Buy. Photo: HandoutHousehold consumption accounts for two-thirds of America’s US$31 trillion economy dominated by citizens who gleefully spend every last dollar – and often more – thanks to easy credit.