National Basketball Association superstar Dwyane Wade's recent 10-day trip to China to promote the country's top sportswear outfitter, Li Ning Co Ltd, is seen as having given a lift to the troubled brand, which is seeking to return to the mainstream sportswear business.

Li Ning, which was in the red last year, recruited Wade, who has some 3.4 million fans on the micro-blogging website Sina Weibo.

China's sportswear industry has been in the doldrums after years of over-expansion, which pushed up inventories and crushed profits.