Foreigners join China’s livestream sales army

BEIJING – Late at night, Lalo Lopez heads to a small Shanghai studio for a livestream, punting Chinese products from cycling shorts to vacuum cleaners to Spanish speakers around the world.

The 33-year-old Spaniard, who describes himself as an artist, DJ and YouTuber, is in the vanguard of the growing ranks of foreigners hired by mainland agencies to extend China’s livestream sales mania beyond its borders.

By some estimates, livestream shopping is a near $70 billion industry inside China, attracting influencers who scour markets and malls for items to peddle to live audiences via social media.

Once an obscure form of shopping, livestreaming is predicted to change…