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Digital advertising runs deepest in North America and China, but growth will come from India and Western Europe. Digital ad spending’s 75% share worldwide is driven heavily by just a few places. The megamarkets of China (86.1% digital) and the US (81.9%) are primarily responsible.

The broader context: These job cuts come at a tense time for TikTok, as US-China trade tensions escalate and the platform faces renewed scrutiny—including the potential for a US ban following President Donald Trump’s second TikTok sale extension.

Separately, YoY sales growth for total retail in China increased, rising to 4.8% in October, from 3.2% in September and 2.1% in August, per the National Bureau of Statistics of China (NBS). Predictions. The government will speed up China’s transition to an economy focused more on domestic consumption to offset possible tariffs imposed by the US on Chinese goods.

JD.com challenges Meituan’s food delivery dominance: The Chinese ecommerce giant will hire 100,000 workers to help break the latter’s hold on the industry.

On today’s podcast episode, we discuss why the Trump administration extended TikTok’s sell-by date again, what deals are on the table, and how creators feel about the potential ban at this point. Join Senior Director of Podcasts and host Marcus Johnson, Vice President and Principal Analyst Jasmine Enberg, and Analyst Marisa Jones. Listen everywhere and watch on YouTube and Spotify.

Companies that get their goods from China now face higher duties and could pause influencer campaigns. That could make it harder for influencers to create any kind of content since many content creators rely on brand or product sponsorships. Our take: If digital ad spending growth slows, creators could see smaller ad-share payouts from YouTube.

Luxury brands are grappling with downturns in the US and China, the largest markets for personal luxury goods, and will have to seize opportunities for growth from new markets and product innovation.

Social commerce is gaining momentum in the UK—with sales set to double by 2028—as major brands join TikTok and as more people shop on social platforms.

As China’s retail media advertising market begins to mature, off-site channels—including WeChat and Douyin, TikTok's sister app in China—will increasingly drive growth.

The minimum sample size per quarter, per country is 1,250; bigger markets have larger quarterly sample sizes, with the maximum being 25,000 in China and the US. Respondents can participate in GWI's research only once per year. The survey is designed to cover attitudes, perceptions, and actual behaviors.

TikTok Shop’s sales soared 153% in January: The video app’s social commerce arm is eating into Shein’s market share, adding to the hurdles facing the fast fashion company.

TikTok’s return to US app stores drove a 91% decline in downloads for RedNote, the rival Chinese social app that became the most downloaded free app on US app stores last month. RedNote is struggling to retain users despite maintaining a 25% higher daily active user count than before TikTok’s removal.