Economic worries have taken center stage as the slump in the housing market deepened, fueling pessimism among consumers. Where once was a gilded age, social media users now refer to the present era as the “garbage time of history.” Coco Li, 46, used to spend about HK$600,000 ($77,000) a year — or roughly 20% of her income — buying luxury items. After losing her job as an executive at a multinational company in Hong Kong, she’s curtailed her habit and put some of her Hermes handbags up for sale on mainland Chinese online platforms.

The things the petty bourgeoise say sometimes are just completely unhinged.