Nike to cut China reliance to ease tariff hit, sending shares soaring

STORY: Nike missed one goal this week.

It tried to help Kenyan runner Faith Kipyegon become the first woman to run a sub four-minute mile.

In the end, she fell just short, but still set an unofficial new record.

Off the track, the sportswear giant has a very different race to run.

It’s trying to beat the impact of Donald Trump’s sweeping global tariffs.

On Thursday the company said it would reduce its reliance on China for manufacturing goods it sells in the U.S. as part of the strategy.

China currently accounts for about 16% of the shoes it imports to the United States.

And Nike aims to cut that to the “high single-digits” range by the end of May next year.

Investors welcomed the news, sending Nike shares soaring 11% in after-hours trade.

Also helping sentiment were forecast-beating results for the latest period.

Fourth-quarter sales sank 12%, but analysts had expected even worse.

China is the pain point there too, with executives saying a turnaround in the country will take time amid a weak economy and mounting competition.

The company is now a bit more optimistic than analysts about the coming period, however.

It predicts sales will see a percentage fall in the mid single-digits, or less than Wall Street has forecast.

Analysts say running shoes are doing well for Nike, making up for expected declines in the sales of regular sneakers.